Three Disciples of L
by lufflesmattXD
Summary: A story featuring Matt, Mello and Near. Told mainly from Matt's point of view. XD I don't own Death Note. No yaoi. Implied MelloxHalle
1. Chapter 1

It was unusually cold for October. Snow crunched under the soles of his black boots, and he kept his face tucked into his collar: raising his head would be tantamount to a face-full of ice. Because of the late hour and the chill of the evening it was unlikely he would run into anyone. Still, he was cautious – it didn't pay to make mistakes in this line of work, and even the most trivial misstep could cost him dearly.

His feet knew where to go, and he let them guide him to the place he was temporarily calling home. When he reached the building he slid his key into the lock, shaking the snow out of his flame-red hair, and entered. He trailed ice up to the third floor – where the apartment was.

Sighing, he unlocked the door with another key, but did not open it. Swallowing his breath in preparation, he entered.

BANG!

Matt felt the wooden floor through his gloves. He scowled, but didn't look up as he made his way to his feet. The first few times he had risen shakily, but now he knew what to expect. The wall behind where his head had been was riddled with bullet holes already, and his dodging was a very much practiced art.

"Mello…" Matt still didn't look up. "I know I've said this before, but I seem to remember you mentioning – a few months ago now – that we probably shouldn't draw attention to ourselves." He finally lifted his gaze, terrifying to most, to look at the one person it would never affect. "How, exactly, does that translate to shooting at me every time I come through the door?"

The blonde man was unabashed, and in fact looked quite innocent with a chocolate bar dangling from his teeth and a book in the hand that wasn't holding a gun. He rolled his eyes at Matt, setting the smoking gun down beside him.

"Matt," He removed the chocolate bar. "You could have been anyone." He turned his eyes back to his book.

"Right." Said Matt, hanging up his jacket, "But I wasn't." He turned his face, which bore an exasperated expression, back towards Mello. "Sometimes I think you're just doing this so you can shoot at people."

Mello kept his eyes down as he bit into his chocolate bar. He replied absent-mindedly;

"And the rest of the time, when you're not thinking that, you're being incredibly short-sighted."

Matt slumped into a chair and lit a cigarette defiantly.

-----------------------

Mello woke up in the middle of the night – around two in the morning. He lay awake for about ten minutes, staring at the ceiling, before succumbing. He needed chocolate.

Carefully, so as not to wake Matt – who was sleeping in the next room, separated from Mello by a thin wall – he padded through to the kitchen.

Mello opened the cupboard, took out a chocolate bar, and sat down at the small wooden table. Just as he was about to take the first bite, the phone rang.

What the hell…? It was the middle of the night. Mello let it ring twice, before getting up from the table and, grumbling to himself, answered it.

"The hell is this?" He asked. Seemingly an overreaction, but Mello had never been the most civil of phone conversationalists.

"Mello." The voice made Mello start. It was unmistakeable. "I apologise for calling you at this hour – although to be honest I didn't really expect you to pick up."

Mello frowned. What the hell was _Near_ doing calling him at two in the morning?

"I don't want to draw this out, so I'll be the only one asking the questions; is that all right with you?" Near continued.

"Why the bloody hell would that be all right with me?" Mello snapped. Near was using his trademark 'calm' that Mello despised to its' full extent. Mello didn't know why he hadn't hung up already.

"Good." Mello could practically feel Near's smug grin. "I know you're working with another person from Wammy's House. Matt, right? And I also know you well enough that you could take it upon yourself to speak for him as well, correct?"

"You wha—" Mello began, but Near kept talking.

"I need your full cooperation on a little… project I'm doing. I completely understand if the answer is no."

"What project?" The words slipped out before Mello could stop them. He was taken aback, and spoke hurriedly. "I mean… No, you ass."

He hung up, but he swore he heard Near disconnect the line first. Mello gasped indignantly, turning the full force of his glare on the phone. He… He…

"DAMMIT!!" Mello yelled, clawing at his face in frustration. "The little….."

Near had proved his point back at Wammy's. Near just HAD to remind him how completely, irrevocably SECOND Mello was at everything.

"Mello…" Mello's head jerked towards Matt, who was standing in the doorway. "What was that?"

"Nothing." Mello growled, turning away. "Shut up, Near." His eyes widened as he realised what he'd said.

"Near??" Matt said quizzically.

Pause.

"That was Near, wasn't it?"

"Shut up, Matt… Go back to sleep."


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: I was originally going to post one chapter every week, but now I've written about ten chapters, I think I'm going to post one chapter every day or every two days. XD! Enjoy:_

Matt couldn't sleep afterwards. Why would Near be calling Mello? He lay awake for hours, resolving to speak to Mello as soon as morning came.

At six in the morning, he couldn't wait any longer, and went to the room next door to his. He knocked cautiously.

"Mello?"

He opened the door, only to find that Mello wasn't there. His jacket wasn't beside the bed either.

"Damn." Matt said under his breath. "How did he manage to sneak out without me noticing…?"

He frowned, puzzling over it. The phone rang.

"Hello?" Matt answered it. His greeting was met with laughter. Whaaat??

"Hello, Matt."

"Huh?" Matt asked. "How'd you…"

"Judging by the way you answer the phone, it's obvious you aren't Mello."

Matt's eyes widened. He knew that voice.

"Near…" He said suspiciously. "Why are you calling? And why did you call earlier? What's going on?"

"Hah." Near chuckled again, "You were always the underdog. I don't imagine Mello told you anything about my call."

Matt's eyes narrowed with annoyance. He felt like growling.

"What do you want?" He asked, trying not to let Near know the remark had gotten to him.

"This isn't about the Kira case." Near said. For some reason this troubled Matt. "I need your and Mello's help on a special assignment." Matt had to laugh. Bitterly.

"You're looking for help." He chocked through his laughter, "And _Mello_ was the first person you called?"

"Naturally." Near's serious voice cut off Matt's chuckles, injecting ice into his veins. There was something wrong with this.

"Naturally?" He asked, eyebrows knitting together.

"Yes. Because this is something I know Mello will be eager to do. It doesn't matter if it means working with me."

Matt was confused. He just couldn't imagine Mello putting aside his grudge to help Near, no matter the situation.

"Are you serious?" Matt's voice was almost a whisper.

"Deadly."

-----------------------

Matt did what Near told him to. Something about his voice as he explained his instructions. Matt knew this had to be important.

The moment Mello walked in the door, Matt caught his attention.

"Call for you." He said, meaning encoded in his eyes. "Don't hang up."

Mello frowned. Matt knew it was obvious Near was on the other end of the line. Nevertheless, Mello snatched the phone from him and held it to his ear. Matt supposed he was the only person Mello really trusted.

"What is it, jerkface?" Mello said casually, addressing Near.

"Don't hang up." Matt repeated, mouthing the words.

He sat on a wooden chair, hands in his lap, while Mello's face went from apathetic – if Mello could ever really be described as apathetic –, to shocked, to determined as Near spoke.

After a while of this, Mello hung up, cursing something about even being second with phones.

"What's going on?" Matt questioned. He may as well have asked the wall, for all Mello paid attention.

"We're going." He said, walking out of the room. Matt hurried after him.

"Going _where_, Mello? Why?"

Mello didn't look at him as he took a suitcase out of a cupboard.

"You don't need to know." He said, throwing stuff into the case. "You're just the underdog."

Matt scowled. As much as Mello despised Near, they had a very similar way of thinking. Well, as far as Matt was concerned… and that was really where the similarity ended.


	3. Chapter 3

Mello was on the phone again to Near up to the last second before they left in a car. Matt guessed they weren't coming back to that particular place – Mello had packed almost everything.

"That was Near on the phone, right?" Matt was irritable.

"Yeah, 'course." Mello said, looking towards the incoming traffic. "He gave me some more details."

"Is that all…?" Matt muttered.

"Oh, and he told me to send his regards to the underdog."

Matt wanted to snap something, preferably something connected to Near or Mello's head and shoulders.

-----------------------

Mello had been driving for about two minutes in silence – oblivious to Matt trying to strangle the air beside him – and had already started thinking about what he'd resolved not to think about in this car trip.

L…

Mello had never heard L's real voice, let alone seen his face, and still the anonymous detective had been like a father to him.

Despite that, he had seen L's death coming. He'd known immediately that the Kira case wasn't your ordinary, run-of-the-mill sadistic mass-murderer situation. It was obvious, really. But, he reasoned, no matter how prepared you were for something like that, it still hit you hard.

Mello cast his memory back to that day.

_He was shocked at Roger's words – Why hadn't L chosen?? He stormed out of the room, ignoring all the kids around him and heading straight for the room he and Matt shared._

_He yelled swearwords into the air, disrupting Matt's concentration on his video game._

"_Mello? Are you all right?" Matt was confused._

"_No I am not the f*** all right! L's f***ing dead!" He'd buried his face in his pillow, still yelling._

"_Oh…"_

'_Oh…' barely covered it._

"_uh… Mello?" Matt's voice was nervous. "I understand, and I know how you must feel… But now, at least you get to take over as L, righ—"_

_Matt's words were cut off by a fist hitting his face._

"…_Was that the wrong thing to say…?"_

Mello blinked, brought back to the present by Matt yelling in his ear.

"MELLO!! Earth to Mello!! You're driving on the wrong side of the road!"

Mello snapped back into full consciousness.

"Oh, cra—"

He jerked the wheel violently, sending the car screeching back to the right side of the road. Luckily, there were no cars in the immediate vicinity.

Mello swore loudly.

-----------------------

Matt fumed. Silently, of course. Fuming out loud was not his sort of thing. But seriously! _He_ was the supposed 'underdog' to this… this… MELLOHEAD!!

Damned would-be-L-successor couldn't even drive properly.

After a few hours, they stopped to fill up the car, and more importantly, buy chocolate. When they started moving again, Matt drove. Stupid, really. He didn't even know where they were going. He had to ask Mello for directions at every intersection. Luckily, those were few and far between.

Finally, after about three hours, Mello told him.

"We're going to Phoenix, in Arizona." He said the words calmly. That made Matt nervous; since when was Mello calm about anything? He kept a straight face, though.

"Okay."


	4. Chapter 4

Mello was glad when they arrived at a hotel in Phoenix. He couldn't say why, but he'd had an annoying feeling throughout the whole car ride that Near would be there first.

Half an hour after they arrived, the phone rang.

_Hmmm… _Mello thought _That was fast._

He couldn't help thinking that Near had somehow planted some sort of tracking device on them. Stupid, of course; Mello hadn't even seen Near in years.

Matt was closest to the phone, and he pressed the speakerphone button.

"Hello?" he said.

"Oh." It was Near. Of course. "It's the underdog."

Mello fought the urge to laugh as Matt looked around for someone he could shoot without being reprimanded.

Mello swooped close to the phone, a curtain of blonde hair obscuring Matt from view as he leaned towards it.

"Near." He said, trying to sound as epic as possible.

"Mello."

Mello scowled. Even he couldn't deny that Near's epicness surpassed his own by miles.

"I want to meet you, Mello." Near suggested, and Mello couldn't shake the feeling that Near was rehearsing for something.

"And I would rather go my whole life without meeting you again." Mello smirked. "Where and when?"

Near listed the address, the date and the time.

"Suits me." Mello said, desperately trying to sound like he wasn't finished his sentence.

Despite that, he still heard the beep that indicated Near had disconnected the line; before his finger had even reached the button. He cursed under his breath.

Near!

-----------------------

Matt knew he was going to be brought along. Like an accessory. He scowled as he fought to stop his anger from showing. Still – this could be interesting. Mello and Near meeting for the first time in years.

And by interesting, he meant deadly for somebody who probably was not a million miles away from being him.


	5. Chapter 5

The place near had agreed for them to meet was a small, abandoned warehouse.

Mello strode in, nose in the air. Matt followed after him warily. He couldn't help feeling like this was a trap. There should be music. Scary music.

It was dark, compared to the bright sun outside, and Matt blinked to adjust his eyes to the lack of light.

He blinked under his goggles.

Near hadn't changed at all in the years they'd been away from each other. In comparison Mello, with the scar, messed up hair, and striking 'fashion sense' could have been a different person to the one Near would remember. So different they could have sent a more convincing proxy.

His personality was the same, though. Matt hoped he wouldn't try to prove it. Near was kneeling on the floor, facing towards them. He had two men standing behind him. Matt narrowed his eyes.

This seemed like a scene from a movie… Almost too carefully arranged. It was Near who spoke first.

"Mello." He nodded at Mello. "Underdog." Then Matt.

Matt had had enough, and he felt a growl rise in his throat… And heard Mello growl too.

"NEAR!"

In one swift movement, Mello pulled his gun out and aimed it at Near. The hammer clicked back so smoothly there was barely any noise.

There were two similar clicks as Near's men pulled out their guns, training them on Mello.

Matt started. Then grinned.

"Yeah!" He yelled. "How dare you call me an underdog, Near! Go for it, Mello!" He swore he felt actual bloodlust. Mello laughed.

Wait… Mello _laughed_?

"Sorry, Matt…" The blonde chuckled humourlessly, never moving his eyes from his target. "I'm not going after your revenge."

"What?"

"Matt." Mello almost snarled. "I'm pointing a gun at Near because I'm pissed at him. Not because _you _are."

Matt literally staggered backwards. He couldn't form words.

_Perhaps,_ he theorised, _if you spend too much time feeling stupid then you eventually _become_ stupid._

"Y-you…" Matt stuttered. "TRAITOR!!" He yelled in anger as he flipped his own gun into his hands and clicked back the hammer.

Three guesses where he was pointing it.

Everyone was surprised. Even to the people who had no way of knowing; Matt wasn't like this. Maybe it was the strain of being degraded by Near AND Mello as opposed to just Mello lately.

Matt himself had never expected to be in this situation; infuriated and holding a gun to his best friend's head.

He was even more shocked when Near waved his hand, and one of the men shifted his aim towards Matt. So Near didn't want Mello dead, either?


	6. Chapter 6

_A/N: how can I make so many mistakes in one day? Firstly, I accidentally posted chapter one again instead of chapter five – fixed now by the way – and now I've realised I split up my chapters wrong. Crap. Sorry._

Mello was surprised, but didn't show it. He glanced quickly at Matt, just to make sure this was actually happening. He would have expected it from himself, but not Matt. What was _with_ him?

Nothing for it – he had to protect his own back.

He pulled out his second gun, sliding the hammer back without so much as a flinch. Which was more than could be said for Matt.

"What?" Matt squinted at Mello, frowning. Then resolve settled over his features.

"Hmm?" Mello barely had time to utter before Matt expertly bought his gun-free hand upwards, connecting it with Mello's hand.

Before Mello could stop it, the gun he had trained on Matt flew up into the air.

Matt caught it, and pointed it at Near

Mello grimaced, turning his eyes back towards his primary target. Also Near. Unperturbed as always, the smug little git had observed his and Matt's exchange without batting an eyelid.

Now, though, Near wasn't looking at him. Mello followed his gaze back to Matt.

No; _beyond_ Matt. Behind him.

Mello watched his companion's confusion turn to recognition, and the colour slid away from Matt's face, leaving white shock in its' place.

The red-head whipped around, just as Near spoke one calm word;

"Lidner."

Suddenly, Matt was in a headlock.

-----------------------

This was the first time Hal Lidner had met 'Matt', the third-in-line to become L's successor. She felt a little annoyed that this was his first impression of her. What with her attacking him and all that.

She supposed it was a good thing she had been standing in the doorway, and not behind Near. She'd known the little boy she took her orders from wouldn't appreciate it if things got out of hand. Even she didn't know the specifics of the plan, but she understood that it was vital that all three of them were there. And alive, of course.

But, in this circumstance, she really didn't have time to think about that. Too late.

Matt had escaped her headlock and was pointing one gun at her head, the other at Mello's.

_Well…_ Lidner thought, reaching towards the gun at her own hip. _As long as nobody kills Near, my job is done._

There were two simultaneous clicks. One next to Lidner's ear, the other next to Matt's.

_Like I said, _Lidner chewed her lip nervously, _as long as nobody kills Near…_


	7. Chapter 7

_A/N: Must I keep screwing up? I posted the unedited version of chapter seven. If you already read it, please read it again._

-----------------------

Matt narrowed his eyes. Near'd had a third bodyguard behind him. Wasn't that cheating?

Looking away from Lidner could turn out to be fatal, so he had no way of securing his other target, or seeing what was going on. Still, it wasn't like those were high priorities.

"Are you two finished?" Near's voice came from behind him, calm as ever.

"Jerkface." Matt and Mello both muttered under their breath. The coincidence was either overlooked or disregarded by Near. Most likely the second.

"Good." Said the boy. "I'd like to get down to business. Now that we're all here – physically at least." Matt almost heard Mello's irritation crackle at the implication. "I've already checked the building for bugs or cameras, and I can assure you we will not be overheard.

"I have recently been contacted by a bank in New York. Apparently I was to inherit $1001100 when I came to be seventeen. This in itself was suspicious; and even though I knew it had to be L, I did not understand why this hadn't been given to me when he died. It was then that I discovered something odd. All the numbers were zeros and ones. It was a message – simple but ingenious."

Something clicked in Matt's head. He and Mello spoke at the same time.

"Binary."

"Exactly." Near said. "Obviously, any number of zeros can be added to the front of a whole number without changing it. One zero added to the front and guess what it spells."

"What?" Mello said. He sounded annoyed at Near's inability to get to the point, but he couldn't hide his interest.

"L." Near intoned. "Just L."

-----------------------

Mello was completely stumped as to what this might mean. Was L trying to send a message to his successors? If so, why had he sent it to Near? Something occurred to him.

"Hey, jerkface; if this was the only thing you found out, why'd you drag us all to Arizona?" Near rolled his eyes. The message was clear; Near was telling him that he'd never do anything without a reason.

"I was able to ascertain that the account had been set it up from Phoenix, Arizona, Under the name; Mail Jeevas. Does that name mean anything to y—"

He was cut off by a sharp intake of breath from the other side of the room. Matt

Mello turned his head, frowning.

"Ah…" Near said. "I see… You–"

He was interrupted again, this time by Mello. He was going to find out what that name meant to Matt by himself.

"Any chance at all this _could _be a coincidence?"

"None at all." Near told him. "The chances of that are about 0.02%. So. Are you willing to help me find out what this means?"

And idiot could recognise the silent, but grudging consent from both Mello and Matt.


	8. Chapter 8

_A/N: This chapter contains a moment which, with certain implications, could appear to indicate yaoi. This is _not _how it's supposed to be. If that's what you're expecting, please stop reading now._

-----------------------

Matt was confused, to say the least. He hadn't said a word as Near gave Mello an address and allowed them to leave. Mello hadn't said a lot either, but Matt knew that would soon change.

True to his lack of words, the second they were in the car and driving back to the hotel, Mello rounded on him.

"What was that about?" he asked, none too gently.

"Umm… What was what about?" Matt asked hopefully. There could be the slightest chance he could get out of this. Maybe.

"Don't act stupid, Matt." Mello said. No such luck.

"You mean m– the name, don't you?" Matt was shocked at what he'd _almost_ said.

"Of course I do." Mello said, thankfully oblivious to Matt's minor screw-up.

This wasn't something Matt had wanted. Of course he trusted Mello. Of course he did. Right? It was hard enough trying to make sense of the situation at hand.

Why would L send Near a message using _his_ name…?

-----------------------

Mello waited impatiently. What the hell did Matt know about 'Mail Jeevas' that he didn't. Maybe he'd have to figure it out by himself…

Suddenly, it clicked. Of course!

"Matt, are _you_ Mail Jeevas?" The question was straightforward enough.

Matt's silence told him everything.

"Hmmm…" Mello pondered. "But why…?"

"I have no idea." Matt said.

"No," Mello said, irritated. "I mean why would L single out you _and_ Near and leave nothing to do with _me_??"

Matt laughed.

Mello pulled out his gun. Again.

-----------------------

That night Matt decided to go out. Alone. Mello had been right in the car; L _had_ singled out him and Near. What Mello didn't know was how much Matt had been singled out. With all the other stuff, this couldn't be a coincidence.

When Mello had announced they were going to Phoenix, he'd taken it in stride. Not that he'd actually expected to go there, but it had always been a possibility. There was no way he'd actually see anything of his past unless he actually chased it – something he'd never expected to do.

And now he was doing it.

Staying awake wasn't a problem; there was no way he could sleep. He left at midnight. While he was putting on his jacket, something made him look back at Mello.

Sleep seemed to change him, he almost looked docile. Though the gun resting under his right hand sort of ruined the effect. Matt grinned. *_A/N reference_*

He slipped out unnoticed.

A few seconds after Matt stepped outside, he was already soaked. Typical. This type of weather was incredibly rare in Phoenix – and yet it started just at the time he arrived. Was it just him, or was it an omen?

The rain fell heavily, drenching him and clouding his goggles. He took them off as he walked, letting them hang round his neck.

He didn't bother to take a taxi, despite the pouring rain. His jacket was soon useless at the mercy of the elements, but he barely shivered.

As long as he could light a cigarette…


	9. Chapter 9

_A/N: This chapter is an extra long one which addresses Lidner and Mello's past by way of flashbacks. XD. Hope you enjoy! And by the way, this _does_ take place in the storyline. Directly after the last chapter._

-----------------------

Mello awoke in the early hours of the morning. Something didn't seem right. He got up, checking anything that might have been out of place. It soon became clear that Matt wasn't there.

"Hmm?" Mello was confused.

"Hello, Mello." Said a voice behind him.

Mello whirled around, reaching for his gun. He didn't have it with him. He was about to attack with his bare hands when he realised who it was.

"…Hal?" Mello blinked at the woman. "How'd you get here?"

Something hit him.

"Where did you take Matt??"

Hal Lidner started.

"What are you talking about?" she asked.

It took a while.

"Oh…" He said. "Crap." He looked away, slightly embarrassed at his mistake. "Why are you here anyway?" He asked bluntly.

"I, uh…" Lidner bit her lip. "I was walking this way, and I thought…" Mello narrowed his eyes.

"At one in the morning?"

"I'll go." Hal hurried towards the door, but Mello stopped her by grabbing her arm.

"What?" She asked. Mello looked at her. "What??" she repeated.

"Nothing…" He let Lidner go.

When she was gone, Mello sat down, resting his elbow on the table and holding his chin in his palm. Why had Hal just turned up for no reason? He sat, wondering, and memories came back to him. The first time they met…

_Mello had always wondered what it felt like to run for his life. It seemed like something one should experience in one's lifetime. The adrenalin – the adventure._

Bullshit_ he thought. _Utter crap.

_The real experience was nothing like the movies. No handy alleyways or anything like that. No getting away. No escape._

_It was like fire burning through gasoline, after him – closer and closer. And he couldn't get away._

_Pedestrians were hardly a problem; the streets were deserted at this time of night. No sign of life except the light coming from windows of houses. Mello resented those people._

_If he'd had enough breath to curse, he would have. It had the potential to become an incredible performance. What they didn't tell you was how many swearwords it was possible to come up with when your life was on the line._

_No hope… None…_

_But hang on… What? Surely he wasn't that lucky?_

_Now he knew what it was like to see the light at the end of the tunnel. It was a woman, going into her house. Straight up ahead. Mello checked behind him. The policemen were still round the corner, but this was a long stretch of road._

_Could he make it?_

You only live once… _he thought desperately as he threw his life force into running._

_The door was open now, the woman was stepping inside. What? No! He couldn't be too late!_

"_AAAARGH!" He yelled as he threw himself through the door, knocking over the woman._

_He sprang up instantly, slamming the door behind him._

…

_He was alive… YES!!_

_Mello threw up his arms, closed his eyes and whooped loudly._

_When he opened his eyes, he was looking at the woman. The _angry_ woman._

Oh… CRAP…

_He cast his eyes over her. She was wearing a suit. But she couldn't be a businesswoman; she didn't have a briefcase of any kind. Hmm… no uniform, so she wasn't a cop… What a relief. But… _

_Instinctively, he glanced at her ear. There it was. The telltale sign. She was wearing an earpiece._

_Oh… oh, no… He couldn't have…_

_He'd stumbled into the home of… an FBI agent?? His eyes widened._

"_I-I can explain!" He stammered quickly, reaching towards her._

_The woman narrowed her eyes. Her… pretty eyes._

Crap, Mello, this is _not_ the time to be noticing how nice her eyes are! _He screamed internally._

_With everything going through his mind like this, he barely even noticed when she knocked him unconscious._

_When he woke up, the first thing he noticed was pain. He sat up and raised a hand to tenderly feel his face. _

Ow…

_The second thing he noticed was the woman, standing next to him._

"_Who the hell are you?" She asked. "And why are you here."_

_Mello patted his pockets for his wallet, which contained his ID, but found nothing._

"_Oh," Said the woman, "Are you looking for this?" She dangled his ID in front of his nose. "Well, it's a fake. Not even a very convincing fake."_

_Huh? So she _was_ an agent. Mello smiled weakly._

"_Erm…" he had _no_ idea how he was going to get out of this one. The woman was looking him up and down._

"_Hmm…" She said. "About eighteen,, probably runaway or orphan." She looked into his eyes. "Or both. Running from somebody and possesses an illegal fake ID. Give me one reason why I shouldn't arrest you right now."_

"_You're an FBI agent." Mello blurted out suddenly. Why? What the hell…?_

"_And…?" The woman raised a blonde eyebrow._

"_And… Uh…"_

"_ID?" She asked innocently. "Here. It's not __fake__." Her voice was thick with implications as she pulled out a small rectangle from inside her jacket. She allowed Mello to study it._

Halle Lidner…_ Mello thought. _And, of course, the irony is that it probably _is_ s fake name. The FBI is too worried about Kira not to take precautions like that…

_Kira… The name drew hatred from Mello's heart, which was instantly banished by a strange feeling… Halle Lidner… Had he heard that name before? No… But before he could stop himself, his lips formed the question his mind hadn't been able to._

"_Are you in the SPK?" He asked, then realised his mistake. So did Halle Lidner._

"_And you know about the SPK… How?" She snapped at him. His eyes widened as she leaned closer, and he leaned instinctively away from the fury spelled out in her eyes._

"_I… Er…"_

_Suddenly, clarification came over her features._

"_You…" She whispered. "You're _Mello_!" Mello was dumbstruck. Near? Of course; he would have the SPK on red alert as to his existence. The two of them sat in silence for a few seconds._

"_Well." Halle Lidner folded her arms smugly. "All I can say is you're not exactly worth your reputation." Mello's face reddened at the obvious insult._

"_Y-you w–" He spluttered, not exactly living up to his 'reputation'._

_Lidner laughed out loud._

"_You can't even come up with witty retorts!" She laughed harder, punching Mello lightly on the shoulder._

_Mello felt more put out than he had in his life. For once he was stumped. What was _wrong_ with this woman?!_

"_And this!" Lidner chuckled, "What are you _wearing_??" She sighed, stifling another giggle. "You looked much more intimidating as a thirteen-year-old."_

_Mello blinked. Ah! So Near _did _have his photograph! He'd suspected it for a while now. Near never failed to have the upper hand._

"_Look at you, you can't even speak!" Lidner was laughing so hard that tears were trailing down her cheeks. Mello was unimpressed._

"_Oh, shut up…" He tried to growl. But he couldn't help letting a chuckle escape his lips at the same time._

_That was how it happened._

Mello sighed. Hal had changed. She was too serious now. She used to be just like him – but his good side, not his bad side.

Maybe she'd changed _because _of him… Mello's mind dragged another memory to the surface…

_Mello felt stupid. It had been three weeks since he'd met Lidner, and now he felt he was second to everyone… Now what would _really_ get the better of Hal?_

_Who did the FBI hate the most? Mello didn't know, but he knew a few people he was pretty sure they weren't too fond of._

_A grin slowly spread across Mello's face. He knew how to become first. To Hal, but maybe even to Near as well._

Yes!_ He bit into his chocolate bar almost evilly._

_He was going to join the Mafia…_


	10. Chapter 10

Matt paused on the doorstep. In fact, he sat there for half an hour, thinking things over. Did he really want to do this…?

Of course he wanted to understand _why_ L had sent him there in the first place. And he could only assume that this was L's intention – to send him back here.

Finally, Matt resolved that if he left now, he would turn up back at the hotel wet – and also with no explanation to offer Mello as to his absence. He stood up, swallowed his fears and rang the doorbell.

Nothing happened. He didn't hear even the slightest ringing inside the house.

_Damn,_ he thought as he hammered on the door with his fist, _the doorbell must be broken. All that for such an anticlimactic ending…_

In his frustration he barely noticed the door open. His fist froze an inch away from the occupant's face. He jerked backwards, stuttering apologies.

Then he realised what he was doing.

Ella Jeevas stared back at him with wide eyes.

-----------------------

Matt's sister hadn't changed at all since he'd last saw her. Despite the awkward silence, Matt couldn't help but remember that time.

_A car crash. These things happened so often, and yet just one such incident could send a life spinning of its' axis. There were no surviving relatives, and so Mail and Ella Jeevas had nowhere to go. An orphanage was the only place for them now…_

_One such shock could send a small girl into denial – and two of these could totally tip her over the edge. Ella was admittedly strong for a six-year-old, though a little shy._

_Still, thoughts of her happiness haunted Mail for years afterwards._

_They hadn't been happy in the orphanage, and they didn't fit in that well. It was a few weeks after they'd arrived that an old man happened to visit the orphanage. He spotted Mail instantly. Just a kid with red hair and a stripy t-shirt seemed to have special significance to this man. He was taken away. Ella had nobody._

_Years later, after Mello had left Wammy's House, Matt had felt a sudden urge to find his sister. He'd managed to find out where she lived – In America, would you believe it? But a thought crossed him, just after he'd made up his mind to go._

_He'd abandoned her. What good would it do if he went there now? He'd probably only hurt her._

_He'd just continue on with his life…_

And where was he now? Just a runner-up to become L who smoked and took orders from a guy with long blond hair. These thoughts ran through his mind as his little sister realised who he was.

"…Mail…?" Matt winced, as though he'd expected her not to remember. "Is that you?"

He braved a look in her eyes. He couldn't read them.

"Yes…" he answered in a whisper, then cleared his throat. "Yes, it's me."

Ella's expression hardened. He couldn't tell why.

"Come in." Her voice was unreadable, too.


	11. Chapter 11

It was then that Mello remembered that Matt wasn't there. Where would he have gone?

"Idiot." Mello admonished the thin air in front of him.

Well whatever; he'd turn up eventually. And now that Mello was up he could think about the strange situation Near had presented to them the day before…

What the hell was going on…? And why was it Near and Matt that L had sent messages to? Was he that invisible? No. If there was anything Mello refused to be with all his heart, it was invisible.

He thought back over his life…

Mello didn't remember anything before Wammy's House, but if what Roger told him was true, he'd been abandoned by his parents. Nobody could tell him who they were, or if they were still alive. There was nothing there that couldn't be spoken aloud.

In the 'friends' category, he had been quite popular at Wammy's, but the only person he could truly count as a friend was out somewhere getting wet.

_Idiot…_ He repeated internally.

Then there was love. He'd never considered it to be a big part of his life – he was more important than that. With the possibility of becoming L, he had never looked at any girl twice. And as far as he could tell; neither had they…

Mello's thoughts flickered involuntarily back to Lidner's face before, when she'd appeared for no good reason. He couldn't help but think…

He tried to shake off the strange feeling that this was important. Not to him, necessarily, but maybe…

L couldn't possibly know about the connection between him and Hal – seeing as how they'd met after his death.

But what if he'd left somebody… Somebody besides Mello, Near and Matt. It was stupid, as was this entire train of thought, but there was no harm in trying.

Mello grabbed his jacket and walked out the door.

-----------------------

Matt sat in Ella's tiny kitchen, trying to get his thoughts in order. He finally decided that, if this was going to be anything but pain, he would have to tell her everything.

"Ella," He began, looking her in the eyes, "Did you ever wonder why we were separated?"

"Of course." Ella said, narrowing her eyes – the same shade of grey as Matt's own.

"Well…" he started. It seemed sort of pathetic, but he continued on and told her everything about Him, Mello, Near, and L. He also told her about the Kira case, and the current situation with L's mysterious message. By the time he was finished, her eyes were wide. She finally spoke.

"You've been rather busy, haven't you…?"

"Yeah." Matt grinned. "You could say that…"


	12. Chapter 12

"Now," Matt said, "I should probably tell you why I came. As I said, the mysterious bank account was set up in Phoenix, under the name; "Mail Jeevas". To tell you the truth, I spent some time several years ago trying to find out where you were. I eventually found out your address here." Ella frowned.

"Why didn't you come – back then?" She asked. Matt didn't answer.

"The situation was… complicated…" He said, finally. Ella folded her arms, but didn't say anything. "But the reason I'm here now is that I think L left some sort of message for me… He would have known about you."

Ella's expression turned to a smug grin.

"I have a smart big brother." She proclaimed.

-----------------------

Mello didn't know where Hal was, but if he walked towards the address Near had given him – a hotel – he would probably find her. She couldn't have gone too far. Even so, he started to run, wondering if he was too late.

He imagined their 'reunion' in his mind as he ran.

_He saw her, standing in the rain. She turned to look at him…_

"_Hal…" He said. "I missed you…" His voice was full of emotion. He heard her intake of breath._

"_Mello…" She said. "And to think you're the only man I ever felt a connection with…"_

Mello shook his head, spraying an innocent man getting into a taxi with water from his hair. That sounded like some corny attempt to get a weak woman to do something for him…

He would have to make it up as he went along.

-----------------------

Matt blinked.

"What?" He said. Had he been right? He could imagine what Mello would say to that;

'Whoa. A landmark in history.'

But whatever – this wasn't about Mello. Ella spoke.

"I'm not sure, but I think he _did_ leave you something." Ella said…

_Ella Jeevas went through the post like she did every day, flipping her red hair out of her eyes. There were a couple of bills, an invitation to some friends' cousins' birthday, which she flicked neatly into the bin. And then there was a package._

_She sat down to open it. Inside the package was a small communicator-type thing. It looked like something out of a movie. She checked the name and address on the packaging. Definitely her. There was no return address._

_She pressed the obvious 'on' button. Words flashed on the screen._

'_Voice recognition required.' It said. Ella raised an eyebrow._

"_Hello?" She said, into the small microphone. Nothing happened._

"_Whatever." She tossed it into a cupboard._

"So you think that was for me…?" Matt asked. "Do you still have it…?"

"I think so." Ella said, getting up from the table. "I haven't moved it." She left the room and returned quickly with a dust-ridden black box in her hand. She laid it on the kitchen table. Matt cleared some dust of the screen and pressed the 'on' button.

The words 'voice recognition required' flashed across the screen.

"Hmmm…" Matt said. Now what would L want him to say…?

"Matt." He leaned close to the speaker. Nothing. "Mail Jeevas." Still nothing.

_Damn…_ he thought. _There are endless possibilities!_

"I don't know…" he said. "Maybe Mello or Near could figure this out but…"

He stopped talking when a light on the machine flashed. What?

'Repeat, please.' Replaced the words on the screen.

Damn! What had he said? Mello? Near….? Suddenly it clicked.

"Mello or Near?" He asked, then held his breath.

'Voice accepted.' A green light flashed.

"Yes!!" He grinned, and was about to say more when a calligraphic 'L' appeared on the screen and a recorded voice started talking.


	13. Chapter 13

Matt and his little sister stared wordlessly at the small screen. The sound issued from the speaker with minor interference, and the L on the screen was not even slightly distorted. For all that the little black box had looked cheap; it seemed that L had combined his need to be inconspicuous and the need to preserve the message.

"Matt." The voice, warped through a filter, uttered. "Mail Jeevas. This is for your ears, and your sisters', only. This message will only play once. Even so, I want you to destroy this as soon as possible so that there is no evidence.

"I assume that, by now, Near has turned 17 and received the money I sent him. You will have come here out of curiosity, wondering if this was a coincidence. It should be clear to you by now that it most definitely is not. If you are worried about your or your sisters' safety, I can assure you nobody knows who you are. I've been keeping an eye on you both.

"I can also assume that I am dead, if you are hearing this. This has been something that has been on my mind for quite some time now – and I need a way to secure the existence of L. I have used you for this because I know you are not strictly competing with Near and Mello for my position. You are irrelevant; and, as far as _my_ cause goes, impartial."

Matt blinked at the blunt words. Well, they were true, in a sense. He was irrelevant… How did that make him feel?

"If the three of you are gathered in a certain place at a certain time, I can confirm that this meeting will not be without consequences. All you have to do is prompt people in the right direction.

"You may be wondering by now. What are my reasons for doing all this…?"

Matt held his breath.

"I want to confirm a successor, once and for all…"

-----------------------

Mello continued to slog through the rain, but he was beginning to lose hope. Would he ever catch up to her?

He looked down at his feet, willing them to move faster.

Had Mello been looking up, he would have noticed the woman that came into the range of his view through the rain. She stopped, and turned slowly.

Hal Lidner's eyes widened as Mello slammed into her.


	14. Chapter 14

"Hal!"

"Mello!"

Mello frowned. "Hal!" he repeated.

"Mello…?"

"H–"

"Mello what are you doing here?"

Mello blinked, and then went for a sheepish expression. Needless to say, it didn't work.

"Mello, what on earth are you doing??" Mello chewed his lip. Damn.

"I, uh, have to talk to you." He blurted out.

"Oh, really?" Hal said, raising an eyebrow. "Well you certainly aren't doing a very good job of it."

-----------------------

"Are you ever coming back?" Ella asked. Matt didn't know what to say. They had seen the rest of the recording, and then tossed the device into Ella's fireplace, waiting until it was burnt beyond recognition – just to be safe.

"I couldn't really say, Ella." He glanced upwards, as if there was some answer in the dark and stormy sky. "If the plan goes the way L wanted it to, there's no way I can come with you. And assuming Mello doesn't get through this with his ego intact we probably won't be hanging around." He looked at her and frowned. "No, even if nothing happens to him, he'll still want to leave as soon as possible." Ella sighed.

"Can't you do anything but what Mello tells you to?" Matt's face darkened before she'd finished her sentence.

"Oh, it's _very_ easy for you to say that…" he replied. Then he smiled.

They embraced wordlessly, but the sadness emanating from her was enough to understand.

"I'll do my best to come back" Matt said; glad that she couldn't see his face. He _was_ resting his chin on the top of her head, so her seeing his face was likely impossible from their position.

"I know you will."

-----------------------

Lidner and Mello walked into a bar. No joke – it was the only thing open at two in the morning. Actually, it would be more accurate to say that Lidner walked, Mello stumbled. He had taken the liberty of appraising his situation, and his only conclusion was that he looked _damn_ stupid.

Rain, running and humiliation are not the best combination of things to keep a man from looking anything but bedraggled. And in fact, 'bedraggled' was an assessment as fair as any other for the way he looked. His hair was wet and dripping, he was breathing hard from all the running and to cap it all he was being outshined by Lidner beside him – who, coincidentally, seemed to be immune to rain.

There were hardly any people in the bar – it was a week night after all – and the bartender was engrossed in cleaning glasses. Mello narrowed his eyes suspiciously. How many glasses could there be to clean? It would be all too easy for him to tape their conversation.

Lidner didn't wait to be invited before she sat down at a table. Mello followed her, thinking about saying 'ladies first'. But no, he was a little too late for that.

Story of his life…


	15. Chapter 15

Lidner gazed piercingly at Mello. Of course, she didn't realise she was gazing piercingly; she was just trying to figure him out. He seemed… different…

"So…" She said finally. "What did you want to say to me?"

"Hmm?" Mello looked up, as if he'd been deep in thought. "Oh." He rested his elbows on the table. "Well… Hmm… Hal, you can keep a secret, right?"

The question startled Lidner. "Yeah, of course." But Mello brushed that aside with a gesture.

"And I don't mean a normal secret. This could be the end of somebody's life." Lidner frowned. Then it clicked.

"Oh, a name."

"Exactly."

"Mello, I'm insulted. Of course I can keep a name to myself – Surely you know me well enough to know that."

"Okaaay…" Mello hesitated, resting his chin on his palm. "I may as well start from the start. Of course, you were there and you know all about the mystery bank account."

Lidner rolled her eyes. "Thanks, Captain Obvious." Mello ignored her and carried on talking.

"It was filed under the name 'Mail Jeevas'. Which, none-too-coincidentally, is also…" He looked her in the eyes. "Matt's real name." Lidner thought for a moment.

"…And…?"

"L left a clue for Near. He left a clue for Matt."

"So…?"

"So," Mello closed his eyes, looking frustrated. "Where's _my_ clue? Why didn't leave a message for _me_?" He opened his eyes again, and they were full of resentment. "It makes no sense. I have no connections to Phoenix, so it doesn't explain why we were sent here. I see no way for there to be anything else… Except…" He didn't have to finish his sentence.

"…Except if L knew you wouldn't accept being left out."

"Exactly." Mello leaned closer to her. "And the only person I can think of who'd know anything about this – and would be willing to tell me anything – is you."

It was rare, considering her background and her job, but Hal Lidner suddenly felt _waaay_ out of her depth…

-----------------------

It was still raining, but Matt wasn't really bothered. He had an objective. L's words ran through his mind again.

"On the first of December, 2009, I need you to lead the group somewhere. I have something planned for three o'clock pm. But be careful. Stay clear of the building. You'll find out why."

Matt had the address committed to memory – he wasn't stupid enough to write anything down. He figured it would be simple enough to get Mello and Near to go to the place specified, but did he really _want_ to?

And what would happen if he did…?


	16. Chapter 16

It was the first of December, and Matt was ready. He and Mello had met up with Near already, but their discussions had proved fruitless – mainly because they were less discussions and more a mixture of threats, snide comments and incomprehensible mutters of; "Jerkface…"

Anything helpful would be hung onto like a life raft, and Matt took advantage of this. He approached Mello at eleven a.m.

"Mello, I have a confession to make." The blond looked up from his chocolate, bemused. "I've been doing some investigating on my own."

Mello's eyebrows pulled together. "What?"

"And I've discovered a location which could be useful to the investigation." He relayed the address. "It may be a bit of a long shot, but I think it's worth checking out. Maybe you could discuss it with Near."

Mello's eyes lit up, and he was instantly at the phone, dialling numbers.

"Hey, Jerkface!" He said brightly into the reciever. "I think I've found a location we could investigate from."

"Bastard…" muttered Matt, though he knew it wouldn't change anything. He was counting on that fact. Everything was going fine…

After a few minutes, Mello got off the phone, cursing again. Matt looked at him.

"Man, what is _with_ you and phones these days?" He asked.

"Never mind that," Mello said. "the little bastard says he has 'other priorities'. So we're going to meet there at two-thirty."

Matt was amazed. Two-thirty? This couldn't be a coincidence…

They actually arrived at ten to three, a few minutes after Near did. He was waiting for them outside the building with his three subordinates.

They paused there, Near and Mello exchanging a few insults. Matt was trying not to let them know he was nervous. After a while, Mello started walking towards the place. Before Matt could stop himself, he yelled out.

"Hey," He called. "Don't go in there…" he suddenly realised what he'd done. "Something could… uh… happen…"

Mello turned, eyebrows raised.

"Like _what_, exactly, Matt…?" He said sarcastically as the building behind him blew up.

-----------------------

"HOLY SHIT!" Mello swore, lurching forward before he could restrain himself.

He didn't think, he just acted. Time seemed to slow down as he tackled Lidner, knocking her to the ground. Shards of glass and debris rained down on him as he shielded Hal from danger.

-----------------------

"What the HELL??!" Matt yelled, stunned. _This_ was what L had meant??

He only stood there, frozen, for about two seconds before the blast blew him two metres back and he crashed to the ground. His breath was knocked out of him – and it seemed to hover somewhere over him as he instinctively rolled over and covered his head with his hands.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw the nameless men pulling Near – speechless for once – behind the next to useless cover of the car.

What the _hell_ would L gain by killing his successors??


	17. Chapter 17

Mello lay still for a while after the explosion had died down, shock worming its' way through his system. Lidner stayed quiet for a while. He looked at her face, just as it went from terrified to angry. He felt her move, and then there was cold metal pressing against his head.

"Get up." She said through clenched teeth. Mello blinked, confused, but did as he was told.

He suddenly understood. She was acting. Of course she wouldn't want Near to know that she and Mello had any connection to each other.

Mello looked over to Matt, who was rising slowly, cautious of fallen debris. He was approached quickly by one of Near's other subordinates, and before he or Mello could react, the man swiped Matt's gun out of its' holster.

Mello quickly looked down at his side, but his own gun was gone as well. He quickly realised that it was the one Hal was holding to his head. He looked at her other hand, and saw she'd also stolen his spare. He smirked as she stepped back, joining her companions who were also holding guns.

Mello, realising he had no choice, raised his hands grudgingly, seeing Matt do the same out of the corner of his eye.

Near brushed himself down, although there wasn't a speck of rubble on his white clothes.

"Mello." He said, looking at Mello accusingly. Mello was shocked as he realised how this must look. He glared sidelong at his companion.

"Matt…" He hissed. Matt's eyes narrowed.

"What?" He hissed back. "Honestly, do I _look_ like a pyromaniac?!"

-----------------------

To be fair, Matt hadn't known what would happen. He still felt responsible for it. What was L trying to achieve by doing this?

He bit his lip sheepishly. How the hell was he going to explain this?

He understood what this would look like, but honestly, he'd expected Near to have more sense – he couldn't think Matt was to blame for this. What kind of idiot would plant a trap like that and then _turn up_? His indignation turned to guilt. He'd almost gotten everyone killed.

Mello, who'd been his friend since childhood. Near, the person he respected but would never truly admire. People he didn't even know…

What had he done??

He realised, with a jolt of shock, that he'd fallen for an old trick. The person that sent the communicator to his sister – that wasn't L!

No, it had to be. Nobody else knew who he was.

But why would L do something like this? Why would L….?

Matt was distracted from his grief momentarily as several other buildings exploded.


	18. Chapter 18

It was a truly memorable experience. Chaos erupted around them. The sky was ripped apart by a dozen fiery explosions.

They drew together instinctively – helpless and at the mercy of somebody who wanted them killed.

… Supposedly…

Actually, it was inaccurate to say that they drew together – it didn't sound violent enough - as Matt found out when three people crashed into him in quick succession, effectively knocking his breath from his lungs for the second time in as many minutes.

He was buffeted first by Mello, then Near's black-haired subordinate and then by Near himself – who stayed there. They were back to back, but Matt could feel Near's hands clutching at his striped sleeves and he could tell that the boy was – for perhaps the first time in his life – truly frightened. Still, he didn't make a sound.

The six of them stayed there – with Matt and Near in the middle, Mello facing away from him, but with his elbow digging into Matt's stomach, and the three unnamed FBI agents positioned around them.

Suddenly, fire flared about two metres in front of Matt; and he felt Mello recoil, driving his elbow deeper into Matt's skin. Matt winced, but he understood. Mello'd had a bad enough experience with fire not to react to it now.

The noise penetrated Matt's ears, and he listened helplessly to the shattering of glass and the crashing of wood hitting the ground.

Matt noted silently that Mello had recovered, and used the confusion to steal one of the agent's guns inconspicuously.

_Mello, seriously!_ Matt thought, exasperated, _We're already being accused of trying to kill Near, do you _have_ to help them find a reason to shoot us?!_

Then he berated himself for being so stupid.

_Yes, Matt…_ He thought to himself, _Of course he does…_

-----------------------

Mello could feel his heart pounding in every part of his body – he could hear every shuddering pulse in his ears, addling his brain and swirling his thoughts. The smell of smoke and fear was fresh in his nose, and he struggled to swallow each breath.

The déjà vu was staggering. He didn't want to go through this again. He remembered the pain, the frustration. But worst of all…

Fire blazed in front of him and he reared back, a thought instinctively flashing across his mind.

_My _face_!! _He yelled internally.

He wanted to shoot himself. How vain could he get?!

As it was, he settled for security. The black-haired man was a little to his right – too preoccupied to notice when Mello snuck the gun from his belt. He wouldn't be shooting himself anytime soon, but at least he could shoot anybody – or anything – if they threatened him in any way.

_Hmm, Mello…_ He thought, as more flames flourished seemingly an inch from his nose. _Think you might be a _little_ too late for that._

God. Not again…


	19. Chapter 19

When the explosions ceased and the flames died down, the group all appraised their injuries. To be fair, Matt was the one with the most – despite the fact that they were minor. In fact, most of them hadn't really been caused by the explosions at all.

He had a couple of bruises and a small nick on his face where a piece of wood had glanced off it, but apart from that he only had a large bruise where Mello had elbowed him and red marks on the tops of his wrists were his sleeves had almost cut into him.

He massaged his hands after Near had let him go, frowning. That was possibly the only time Near had ever inflicted physical pain on anyone – and then it just had to be _him_.

"Well." Near's voice made Matt look up from his sleeves. It sounded ever-so-slightly shaky. "I think we can conclude that Mello doesn't want to kill us."

"What the hell do you mean by that?" Said the black-haired guy, who up until a second ago had been wondering where his gun was. "He blew us up!"

"Gevanni." Near said sharply. "He blew himself up once and I gather he realised that it wasn't a pleasant experience. We all learn by our mistakes. If Mello set this up then he wouldn't still be here."

Gevanni frowned, but nodded – Matt guessed he was choosing not to say any more for fear he would be completely steamrollered by Near's words.

"Somebody, though," Near continued. "Definitely wants to kill us. Or, more specifically," His gaze hardened. "You, Mello."

Matt's eyes widened, and he scooted on his heel until he was facing his partner. Mello looked just as shocked.

"_Me?_" He asked. Near responded with a question.

"Did you cut all your ties to the mafia?" He asked accusingly.

"Of course." Mello scowled. "They all think I'm dead. Why would you assume–"

Near cut him off; "I'm not assuming. It's logical that, considering the circumstances, you would be the one somebody would want dead – seeing as nobody knows who I am. And Matt," He tossed his degrading gaze towards the red-head. "Is of no consequence."

Matt wanted to make a comment to the effect that Near's _face_ was of no consequence, but he didn't feel it was the most intelligent way he could contribute to the conversation. He settled for glaring at the ground. Where was the terrified seventeen-year-old _now_?

"Mello, you condemned us all." The white-haired boy's expression stayed steady, but this comment seemed… overdramatic.

Matt couldn't help but feel that Near was lying through his teeth…

-----------------------

One week later, and Matt was still wearing a band aid on his face. The investigation had gotten nowhere, and he was the closest thing he could ever be to depressed.

Mello had gone out – he hadn't said where – and so Matt was the only one there to pick up the phone.

"Mello's out, Near." He said, knowing who it would be. Who it always was. Near surprised him by speaking hurriedly.

"Good." He said, "I need to speak to you, Matt."

Matt frowned. What was going on…?


	20. Chapter 20

"You what?"

"I need to speak to you."

"What, me?" Matt's expression twisted with irony. "The underdog?" Near sighed, but otherwise ignored his comment.

"We searched the sight of the explosion." Matt raised an eyebrow, though he knew Near couldn't see.

"And…?"

"And we found a disk." Near sounded impatient. "It was damaged, but we managed to get it working." Matt was starting to get annoyed.

"_And…?_" he repeated. Couldn't Near just get to the point already?

"It's security protected." Near admitted. "Matt, you're the most reliable hacker I know." Matt snorted.

"_Reliable _hacker…?" He said sceptically, raising his other eyebrow. He could almost _hear_ Near frowning.

"Yeah, okay, that was a stupid way to put it." Near said. Matt didn't answer.

"Okay, okay, I admit it!" Near almost yelled. "I was wrong about you! Now please, I need your h–"

Matt interrupted. "What…?"

"I said I need your help." Near sighed again, and the rush of air came out as crackling in Matt's ear.

"No, no, not that!" Matt waved it away with a hand gesture – another thing that was rendered useless by the fact that Near couldn't see him. "The admitting you're wrong part! Say it again, I need to get it on tape!" Near cracked.

"MATT!!" He shouted into the phone. Matt winced, holding the receiver away from his ear.

"Fine, fine, I'll come!" He said. "No need to yell…"

-----------------------

Matt looked around at the hotel foyer as he waited. The SPK was housed in a different one every time he and Mello came. It was an old technique L had used when he didn't have a permanent headquarters.

He glanced towards the entrance as the man named Gevanni came to greet him. Matt wondered if he'd ever learn what the others' names were… Fake names, not real names – which he'd most likely never know. Mello knew all of them, no doubt, though he'd never told Matt which one was his spy. He wondered if it was this man.

"Had you ever met Mello before…?" Matt ventured as they travelled upwards in the lift. Gevanni shot a glance at him.

"No." he said, his voice made of steel. Matt took the point, and he looked down at his feet, sticking his hands in his jacket pockets.

"Knew you'd say that…" He commented under his breath.

For once, Near was standing up when they came in, looking out the window. Somehow, Matt was reminded of L when the boy turned his head. For one split second, he saw a deep sorrow embedded in Near's eyes.

He understood. This entire situation was riddled with memories of L, and Near had been the youngest when he died – the most susceptible to pain.

However, it was only a split second. Then it disappeared. Matt's frown turned to a grin as he remembered why he was here.

"At least _somebody_ needs me…" His smirk became more pronounced. "And to think it would turn out to be you, of all people…" Near glared at him – a rare occurrence. Near didn't glare often. Matt decided he must be special, at the same time that Near came to the same conclusion.

"And to think, Matt," he responded, "That _you_ would be the one who first made me tempted to swear at somebody."

"Wow." Matt blinked. "That's a lot more than I expected to achieve in my lifetime…"


	21. Chapter 21

Lidner and Mello were in a café, drinking coffee. Mello sipped some of his, then frowned. He took a sachet out of his pocket and poured cocoa powder into his cup. Lidner glanced at him warily but didn't say anything. She looked down at her own coffee.

"The way we look now," She said, "Nobody would ever suspect you'd probably be willing to lead me somewhere on gunpoint." Mello looked indignant.

"Hey, I do what I have to." He frowned thoughtfully, "Although… That _is_ a fairly good idea…" Lidner almost choked on her coffee.

"Y-you what?" She spluttered, hand to her throat. Mello looked at her with wide eyes.

"Nothing." He said, all-too-innocently. Then his expression turned serious. The difference was so huge he hardly looked like the same person. With his scar, he looked almost dangerous. "You know I need your help on this, right?"

"Well, yeah."

"And you're willing to give it to me?"

"Mello," Lidner sighed, resting her chin on her palm. "What the hell would you do without me?"

"I don't know." Mello admitted. "I'd probably be the king of the world."

-----------------------

Matt took one glance at the system and understood why Near hadn't been able to do this himself. With this much security on one disk that would probably end up being destroyed anyway, there was little doubt it belonged to L.

He wondered why L had bothered – he could have made it much simpler and still impossible for the average person to crack. A thought crossed his mind. What if he'd counted on Near not being able to do it…? Maybe he wanted to make Matt and Near closer… Matt shuddered, turning back to the task at hand.

The first level of security was difficult, but Matt slid past it in little more than ten minutes. The second level took half an hour and the third completely bamboozled him. It wasn't unshakable – not by a long way – but it was enough to send his head spinning. He lit a cigarette, breathing in deeply to help him concentrate.

It took three hours, and in the end he actually broke it by accident. After that, though, it was easy. Files flashed into view before his eyes.

"Near!" He called triumphantly, "I did i–" His yelling was cut off by the realisation that Near was standing behind him, and had been for god knows how long.

"AHH!" he cried out before he could stop himself, clutching his heart in shock. Near rolled his eyes, then sat down beside him, raising one leg onto the chair and leaving the other dangling.

Matt turned back to the screen and clicked on the first file. Words came up almost instantly. They read;

"If you are reading this, then I am no longer alive."

That was all Matt read before he turned, jumping slightly at the pressure on his shoulder. Near was bracing his chin on Matt, who didn't even notice the younger boy was crying until there were dark spots staining his jacket.

"…Near…?" He asked tentatively.


	22. Chapter 22

Near didn't react, so Matt turned back to the screen. They read at the same speed, reacting to the same things at the same times. On the whole, Matt reacted a lot more.

_Man,_ he thought, _Near is the most unemotional crying kid I've ever met…_

The words continued.

"I think I can safely say that Near is reading this. Probably Matt, too. If I am correct, Mello will be preoccupied – and everything will be going as I planned. Both of you have received something from me. A message." Matt was only a little surprised, until he read the next part. "I trust you have both disposed of the communicators safely and met at the address I gave you." Matt took in breath sharply, whipping his head round to look at Near. The small boy looked composed, but Matt sensed that he was the closest thing he could get to alarmed. They read on.

"I apologise for the explosion, but I don't think it would have hurt any of you. I made sure it was only small." Matt raised his eyebrows. He was beginning to doubt L's sanity. "I'd appreciate if you'd humour me a little more. I need you, all three of you, to put all your effort into this. I understand this is something of a mystery, but trust me, everything will become clear. For each of the rest of the files on this disk there is a required password. As these events pan out you will undoubtedly figure them out. I leave the rest up to you, whether you choose to do this or continue as you have been. If it is the former, then please do not tell Mello about your meeting. And as for your instructions, I have another location I need you to investigate. This one isn't rigged. Trust me."

They skimmed across the name of a town, and then turned to each other, unanswered questions in all four of their eyes. Matt blinked first.

"Near!" he said to Near, who had taken his chin off Matt's shoulder.

"Matt?" Near replied. He had stopped crying, but his eyes were still red.

They sat there for a minute, trying to formulate sentences in their minds. Of course it was Near who spoke first.

"L contacted you, too?" He asked.

"Me _too_?" Matt said, somewhat confusingly. Then his mind cleared. "L was toying with us, wasn't he?"

"I guess…" Near looked almost sulky. "What did he tell you to do?"

"He gave me the location and told me to take the three of us there on the first of December." He shrugged. "What did he tell you?"

"Pretty much the same thing – however he omitted the address." Near's eyes narrowed. "I suppose he didn't want me to get too suspicious. I thought it was Mello's idea?" Matt sighed. Near got it.

"Hmm…" Matt pondered. "With the one sent to me, he made it sound as if he was trying to choose between you and Mello. He said I was 'irrelevant'. He even chose the words 'Mello or Near' as the password." He locked eyes with Near. "What was your password?"

To Matt's surprise, Near looked down, breaking their eye contact. "Tinea Pellionella." He said finally. Matt blinked.

"What the…" He said. "How the HELL'd you figure that out?" He paused. "Wait. What does that even _mean_?"

He sighed, shaking his head. There were levels of intelligence, he guessed, and there were levels of intelligence.

-----------------------

_A/N: Believe it or not, Tinea Pellionella is my friend's screen name both on Bebo and Deviant art. Apparently, it's the scientific name for a clothes moth, or something. I was trying to think of some super-intelligent word that Near would know, and it was the only thing I could think of. XD._

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	23. Chapter 23

When Mello arrived back at the hotel, Matt was swimming in cables.

"Matt, what are you doing?" He asked, admiring the room as it was with hardware scattered around it.

"Shit." Matt responded. "What the hell is the point of all these cables?"

Why did Mello get this strange feeling that Matt wasn't answering his question…?

It was kind of clear though, that the reason for all of this was that Matt was nearly finished setting up all the computers and equipment they had taken with them.

"Hmm…" Said Mello, tossing his jacket over the back of a chair. "Why didn't you do this earlier?"

"Oh." Said Matt, noticing Mello for seemingly the first time. "We didn't really need it. We don't exactly need it now, but there was nothing to do."

The phone rang, yet _again,_ and Matt struggled to disentangle himself for a few seconds before giving in and just dragging the wires with him.

As he passed Mello – who was standing right next to the phone – he glared at him pointedly. It was comical, really. Matt resembled some sort of chibi cable monster. Mello tried and failed to stifle his laughter as his companion pressed speakerphone.

"Hello." Said Near.

"Jerkface?" Mello and Matt said at the same time. Or rather, Matt tried to say it at the same time – he didn't want anything to seem out of place – but he was half a second too late and it almost sounded like an echo.

"We've searched the area of the explosion." Said Near, causing Matt to frown inwardly. Why would Near repeat this information to Mello? "…And it appears that the person who set it up was not actually trying to kill us."

"What the hell do you mean?" Mello frowned, repeating Gevanni's words from a week ago. Matt was surprised as well. "They blew us up!"

"Yes, it would seem so." Said Near. "But they – whoever _they_ were – only intended to blow up the one building. We found several traces and were able to piece together that a container of gasoline had been tipped over – supposedly by accident. That exploded after the building, which set off a warehouse full of fireworks." He chuckled humourlessly. "It's rather ironic, actually."

Matt knew what would happen next. Whenever the word 'irony' cropped up in a conversation between Mello and Near – phone conversations especially – Mello always needed to find a way to vent his frustration. And, seeing as Near wasn't in the room with them…

Matt caught the punch deftly, allowing it to glance off his palm and into thin air.

Mello was not amused…


	24. Chapter 24

The town L had told them to visit turned out to be located three hours drive outside of Phoenix, and the unfortunate Matt stumbled out of the car – scared out of his wits after spending 3 hours in an enclosed space with a pissed-off Mello.

Needless to say, Near was waiting for them. He didn't look at them as they got out of the car – he was surveying the scenery. The… dead scenery. The town was all but deserted and the only sign of life was an old woman peering through the window of her house at them. The 'shops' were all honesty boxes, which Matt didn't think still existed.

"Well…" Said Near, turning to face them, "It looks like we're going to have to search to find anything useful." He nodded towards the group of people, "We should split up and look around."

Mello scowled and Matt, who was standing next to him, could tell he didn't appreciate taking orders from Near. He could tell Mello was about to say something that they both might end up regretting, so he intervened quickly.

"Right." He said. "One person per street. I'll take this one." He glanced at Mello, hoping he would be appeased, but he only seemed angrier. Crap. Matt guessed he wouldn't be happy until _he_ was the one giving the orders.

Despite this, Mello did as he was told. The group dispersed down different streets and soon Matt was faced with an empty road. He shrugged, then began walking slowly. He had no idea what he was looking for as he ran his gaze along the houses and the honesty boxes. One was selling small potted cactuses.

Suddenly, he felt a wave of nostalgia. He sighed as he looked at the small, spiky plants. They reminded him of Ella – of his family. He stared at the stall for a few more seconds before giving in. Why the hell not?

Matt searched his pockets for coins and fed them through the slot. He didn't want to end up feeling guilty and besides, he felt the old woman was still watching him. He picked up the smallest one, feeling a smile worm its way into his face. The smile soon turned to a frown as he was reminded of his parents.

He turned away, cradling the cactus and continued walking. Or tried to. After two steps the toe of his boot snagged on the ground and, before he could stop himself, he was flying through the air. The cactus escaped his grasp and flew above him. He glared. No way was he letting this happen.

With reflexes quicker than he even knew he had, he caught the ground with his hands and rolled forwards. He smoothly finished the movement and was standing on his feet as he neatly caught the pot plant behind his back.

Matt blinked, half expecting to wake up. Since when had he been that agile? He bought the cactus round to his front, inspecting it for damage. It was fine, which made it even more likely that this wasn't really happening. No way did Matt have good luck like this.

"Damn." He frowned. "That was possibly the most awesome thing I've ever done and the only people watching are plants." He considered. "And possibly some old lady who thinks I'm insane."

He turned back to see what he'd tripped on, sighing. Truthfully, he didn't expect there would be anything. It was more than likely he'd just tripped over his own feet. He crouched, searching, and it didn't take him long to discover that there _was_ something there.

A small lump in the ground – easily overlooked because it was the same shade of dusty orange as everywhere else. Matt narrowed his eyes. It looked strange… Almost man-made…

Coincidence?

_Never_, Matt thought as he set down his cactus and looked around for something to dig with.

-----------------------

"Shit." Mello snarled. "Shit, shit shit shit…."

He was attracting a few glances from people on the street – this one was not as deserted as the one they had been on before – but he honestly didn't care. Damned Near and his… minions!

He threw his gaze around violently, not really looking. To any innocent observer, it would appear he was trying to prove that looks really could kill. Not that anybody who saw him would doubt it…

He stopped, and shut his eyes. They had to be here for a reason, right…? Near had been rather vague about his sources, but Mello understood, rather grudgingly, that Near didn't trust him. So there must be something here to connect with the mysterious chain of events that had lead them to Phoenix.

He opened his eyes, prepared to start looking for real, when he heard a scream.

His eyes widened and his head whipped around in the direction the noise had come from. It was a woman's scream, and so far here he had only seen men. It wasn't absolute, but it was possible.

"Hal…" He whispered, then started running.


	25. Chapter 25

Matt heard the cry of fear just as he had finished shovelling dirt back into the hole. He quickly made sure he hadn't left anything lying around and hurried away.

Even in the mass of narrow streets it was fairly easy to find the place. When he arrived there was only one person on the scene. Something, instinct maybe, told him not to enter the courtyard. He stayed in a small alleyway, peering through.

The woman who'd screamed was one of the SPK – the only woman in the group.

Suddenly, there was a skidding noise and a cloud of dust – kicked up by Mello running towards her.

"Hal!" He yelled. Matt blinked. It didn't sound like a surname… Was it possible Mello knew this woman? 'Hal' looked up, swallowing.

"Oh." She said, her voice sounding a little shaky. "Uh…" Matt looked at Mello's face for some explanation. He saw the blonds' expression change as he looked towards the ground. Matt followed his gaze. At first he didn't see anything, but then, as the dust settled, he made out a small shape on the ground.

A snake.

Matt continued to watch, but suddenly he felt… odd… like he shouldn't be here. What was it, this feeling…? Like he shouldn't be watching this…? Hal was talking again.

"I'm sorry, Mello…" Matt frowned. She apologised? "I'm not usually…"

"I know." Something was thick in Mello's voice… Relief? But why—

Matt almost gasped as he saw what happened next. Mello approached the woman wrapping his arms around her in an embrace. No… Oh, dear God, no…

Mello… in _love_…??!

Matt wanted to laugh out loud – this was the funniest thing he'd ever seen. He covered his mouth, praying he wouldn't give himself away as Mello released Hal. Neither of them seemed to be able to say anything either, but Matt doubted it was because they were trying not to laugh.

As it was, he decided to leave. He really couldn't hold it in any longer. He only managed to run a few streets away before he stopped, doubled up in silent laughter.

-----------------------

Mello looked at the ground, not wanting to admit to himself that he was actually blushing. Seriously – he didn't… he wasn't… Hal spoke.

"I, uh…" Before she could say anything else, however, the rest of the SPK rushed into the scene raising their guns.

"FREEZE!" Gevanni yelled, seeing Mello and aiming his gun. Mello stared, wide-eyed. Subconsciously, he noted Near sidling into the scene behind his subordinates.

He didn't even pull out his gun, he just threw his hands into the air, biting his lip. He didn't want to think what the _hell _was going through their minds right now. He seemed to be getting good at giving people the wrong impression. Luckily, Lidner saved him.

"I'm sorry." She said, sounding unflustered. "I acted unprofessionally. I was merely surprised at a snake – Mello came here because he heard me scream."

The SPK eyed her warily, but lowered their guns. Near, however, seemed unsatisfied.

"I seem to remember that you," he addressed Mello, "Were searching the street the farthest away from here. One would wonder how you arrived here so fast." Mello scowled at the implication.

"Am I the only one here with a sense of gallantry?" He asked. Near was obviously unimpressed, but he seemed to accept Mello's explanation and left the courtyard. The others followed soon after, leaving the two alone again.

Mello turned back to Lidner just in time to see her fist coming. He couldn't do anything but be knocked sideways and crash to the ground. He was too stunned to look back at her. She approached him and grabbed the front of his jacket, hauling him upwards. She shoved her face inches away from his, and he recoiled instinctively.

"_Gallantry_??!" She quoted, snarling. "What the hell do you think I am? A damsel in distress?"

With that she tossed him back to the ground and left.

Mello could do nothing but sit up and scowl at the dirt between his feet.

-----------------------

_A/N: luffles! Sorry if you don't like HalxMello…_


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter twenty-six.

_A/N: Oh, my god, I just read 'Another Note' and it is _so_ awesome! I'm definitely going to try and work it into the story somehow! _Somehow…

-----------------------

After searching for hours and finding 'nothing', Near called them all in to speak to them.

"While I know this may seem futile to some of you," he said, "I can assure you there is _something_ here. It wouldn't be worth it to go back to Phoenix tonight so I think we should stay here." Matt raised an eyebrow.

"_Where?_" He asked. "It doesn't look as if anybody will let us stay. And it's not like we can just set up camp…" He trailed off as he saw Near's expression. "Really?"

"Yes." Near said, a little uncomfortably, "This is an investigation. We can't be hindered by anything." Even his subordinates didn't see the logic.

"With all due respect, sir…" The awkward situation had been enough even to prompt the older one to speak. This was the only one Matt didn't know at least one name of.

So they set up camp. Three successors of the greatest detective in the world, sleeping outside on portable mattresses. The five men – if you could really refer to Near as a man – were situated in a different place than the woman, for privacy reasons. They borrowed blankets from a local, who Matt feared now had a phobia of FBI badges.

When night-time came, Matt was surprised at how clear the sky was. Compared to the city, the stars stood out like beacons in the sky. He was placed on the end of the row of mattresses, which he used to his advantage. He rolled over and took out the small object he'd found buried in the dirt.

It was a small wooden box, engraved clearly with the signature calligraphic L on the top. There was also a small crucifix mark on the lock. Naturally, it wouldn't open when Matt tried it. It was a standard lock – if the keyhole was a lot bigger than usual and square – so there had to be a key of some kind… somewhere… Now where would L put a key?

Matt looked around, randomly searching for something, anything, to open the box. It wouldn't be good to try and force it open – it could be rigged with something, and L would have left something obvious. Well, something fairly obvious at least.

Matt glanced at the row of people, all sleeping. Except for Near, who was simply gazing into the stars with his hands behind his head and a troubled look in his eyes. Mello was facing towards Matt, gun still clutched tightly even in sleep. How screwed up did you have to be to do that? Matt was about to turn away again when something caught his eye. When he looked again, he couldn't see it.

_Damn…_ He thought. _What was that?_

It could have been something important, something to use… Then he saw it again, a glint of something… Something around Mello's neck. Matt froze. Of course… Mello's crucifix matched the one carved on the box exactly. This had to be it…

Now the challenge. How to even attempt to get hold of it without Mello shooting him in his sleep…? The end of the chain was resting next to Mello's chest, moving slightly as the blond breathed in and out. Matt reached forward cautiously, aware that any wrong movement could get him killed. He thought briefly about what would happen if Mello woke up and found Matt trying to steal his rosary. Hmmm… Interesting. Best not to think about it. What _could_ happen, though, and probably would, was that Mello would simply shoot Matt while he was still asleep. Matt grimaced.

He continued to stretch his arm forwards and, choosing a moment when Mello was breathing out, he closed his hand around the cross, pulling it gently towards him…

Had he done it…? He froze, holding his breath and listening for any sound to give away danger. Nothing. Silence, except for the slow breathing of his colleagues. He heaved a silent sigh of relief. But it wasn't over yet… He picked up the box again, but before he could fit the end of the cross into the keyhole, the chain was almost jerked from his grasp.

He lurched forward to stop himself from pulling the rosary and giving himself away as Mello turned over. Every muscle in Matt's body was straining, but he couldn't move. He carefully brought the cross to the box and, deciding the ends were both shaped the same, slid the long end into the hole, turning gently.

There was a click, and Matt almost jerked back in fear – half expecting to feel a gun next to his head. Then he relaxed, and lifted the lid, letting go of the crucifix.

Inside was a single piece of paper. Matt lifted it out and read the word written on it.

"Matsuda" was what it said.


	27. Chapter 27

Who the hell was Matsuda…? Matt frowned. But he knew what this was. It was the password for the next file on the disc L had sent them. He needed to alert Near.

The boy was still awake, but lying two spaces away from him, past Mello and Gevanni. Matt gambled on the fact that they were both deeply asleep.

"Pssst!" He hissed over Mello's head, cupping his hand to his mouth. "Hey, Near!" His voice was barely a whisper, but Near's head jerked towards him instantly, and he took the full force of the wide-eyed stare. Near took his hands out from behind his head and propped himself up on his elbow, frowning at Matt.

Confusingly, the boy started moving his hands. After a second or two, Matt recognised rudimentary sign language. He started reading it soon enough to catch:

"…going on…?" He took it to mean 'what's going on' and put down the box so he could sign back.

"Come over here." He gestured. "I found something." Near frowned, but stood up gracefully and silently and padded over to where Matt was now sitting up.

"What did you find?" he was still using sign language, probably to avoid waking anyone up.

"I…" Matt bit his lip… he wasn't that fluent in signing and he didn't really know how to explain it. For a start, how the hell would he tell Near about the cactus plant?

He settled for laying out the possessions he had gained that day on the ground. Near sat down cross-legged to get a better look at the things. He raised his eyebrow at the pot plant but said nothing, then turned his attention to the box.

He was about to close it and look at the top of the lid before Matt caught his wrist.

"Don't shut it." Matt whispered. "You don't know the difficulty I went through to get it open in the first place."

He saw Near take in the cross on the lock, then followed his gaze as the boy instantly looked towards Mello's neck. Matt frowned. It had been by mere chance he'd figured that out, and he knew Mello better than most people did. Still. When he looked back, the boy was smirking.

Near awkwardly turned the box upside-down to look at the lid. Matt watched him glance at the L briefly, then look back up towards the elder's teen's face.

"What was in here…?" He whispered. Matt held up the piece of paper between two fingers. Near reached for it, smoothing it out and reading the word. His smirk appeared even more smug, and Matt wondered why. Did Near know who 'Matsuda' was? Whether or not, the younger boy didn't say, he only looked back at Matt and hissed;

"Right. Come with me."

-----------------------

Mello dreamt he was getting hanged. At first he could barely feel the rope around his neck, but then suddenly it was pulled tight, constricting his breathing. He reached instinctively to his rosary, hoping to pray for one last chance. It wasn't there.

He looked down and realised that it was the chain of the necklace that was being used to hang him. He looked to his right and saw a dark, shadowy figure. As the chain grew tighter around his neck he used the last of his breath to choke out a sentence.

"You sick… twisted… bastard…" he gasped.

He wasn't sure how or why, but the chain loosened, and he drifted back into dreamless sleep.

-----------------------

The mumbled words entered Matt's ears and he jumped, startled. No way – Mello couldn't have woken up.

But who heard of somebody swearing in their sleep? This had to be a first.

Near was standing, waiting for Matt to follow him, but he looked closer at Mello. He realised the chain of his rosary had caught round his neck. Maybe that had something to do with him calling Matt a sick twisted bastard…

Matt untangled the chain cautiously and then stood up and followed Near. On the way out of earshot of the sleeping party, Near picked up a laptop from the pile of their possessions. Matt took his cactus with him.

Near turned on the computer, sitting cross-legged again, and took the disc out of his shirt, slotting it into the computer. Matt sat down beside him.

"Okay." Near said, not bothering to whisper anymore. "Let's see what it says"…


	28. Chapter 28

Matt read the words carefully, twice. Not _again_…

It was another address.

He looked at Near, who's expression was decidedly dark. Matt didn't really know what to say.

"So…" He floundered. "…Who is 'Matsuda'…?" Near seemed to wake up, his eyes snapping up to look at Matt's face.

"Matsuda?" he repeated. "He's one of the Japanese task force – one of the team that went after the notebook in Mello's mafia hideout." Matt narrowed his eyes.

He hadn't actually been there when Mello was in the mafia, and he'd heard his reasons for joining a while afterwards. He remembered the day he'd seen Mello for the first time in years…

_Matt felt like he was being torn apart by the wind. It tossed him around like a leaf, violently and uncontrollably. He yelled curses into the sky, but they were whipped away and he could barely hear his own voice._

_His jacket was almost blown off his shoulders as he struggled to do it up, and his goggles were nearly ripped from his face._

_And why was he here? A text message._

I need help: come to this location as soon as possible:

_*address*_

Mello

_Matt didn't understand when he saw it – it couldn't possibly _be _Mello, but he didn't know anyone who knew about their friendship _and_ knew his current phone number. Except maybe Near. But he doubted that Near would stoop to pranks to annoy the hell out of people – he had that natural talent already._

_So he'd decided to check it out. He'd driven as far as he could, then when the terrain got too rough he'd started going on foot. And that just happened to be the exact time the wind had decided to pick up._

_He continued trudging in what he thought was the right direction, but he honestly couldn't tell. He couldn't tell right from left, up from down._

_And then he saw it… Now he knew _exactly_ where he was going._

_Smoke was blown Matt's way, but he didn't need to smell it to know what had happened – he could see clearly enough._

_The fiery behemoth towered in front of him, and his eyes widened and shock forced him to stand still even in the wind. A burning building – and the wind was no help, it only caused the flames to climb higher. He stood still for one split-second, and then he ran._

_Ran towards the fire. Mello was in that building!_

_He coughed, covering his mouth to avoid choking to death in the smoke. He found the entrance with the least flames around it and dashed in._

_Matt's head whipped around wildly, searching. Left? Right? He ran up the stairs to his right, shielding his face with his hand. He was blinded in seconds as ash built up on his goggles. He tore them off and left them hanging around his neck, still running. Which room? WHICH ROOM?! He burst into them all in turn until he came to one almost sealed closed by semi-liquid metal._

_It was clear that the building was deserted – only Mello was here now. He felt an adrenaline rush brought on by the madness of panic and crashed through the door, shoulder first._

_The smoke almost knocked him out, but he had to stay fighting – stay alive!_

_Then he saw it – the telltale flash of blond hair. It was nearly obscured by ash, but it was there. Then Matt saw his hands. One held an open cell phone, and the other…_

CRAP_, Matt yelled internally, _you stupid BASTARD, Mello!!

_He was still holding the switch. HE was the one who'd blown the building up. Matt would have yelled had he not been choking, but his breath caught in his throat for more reasons than one as he saw Mello's face. But that didn't matter – all he had to do now was get Mello out._

_He'd had no idea he was this strong, but he managed to haul Mello out from under the rubble and toss him over his shoulder in one swift movement. He had to hold him with both hands, leaving his own mouth susceptible to the smoke._

_Matt choked again, and nearly blacked out, but he kept fighting as he ran down the stairs, searching for the door he'd come in through. Then he almost gave up and died. The door had become completely obscured by fallen rubble._

_But he couldn't give up! He smashed into the pile once, twice, and then…_

_He broke through, staggered a few more steps away from the building and then crashed to his knees, coughing his lungs out. It only took a few minutes to clear the smoke from his lungs, and then he was on his feet again, running for his car._

_Mello was still slung over his shoulder, unconscious. Dead, for all Matt knew. But if he wasn't… There was still time. If he hurried…_

_A few weeks and several rolls of bandages later, he heard the whole story._

Matt flickered back to the present. He and Mello had survived. But it had been close for Mello – and he still bore the large scar on his face and left arm as a reminder.

A reminder not to blow buildings up.


	29. Chapter 29

The next day, Near allowed the group to keep searching for a while to avoid suspicion before calling them in and explaining he had another possible address. They continued on to the place, only an hour away, and discovered another small town.

This time, though, Near found the clue. Another box, buried like the last one. This one had a small eye symbol on the lock.

Matt was wandering along another street when Near found him. He was looking around, scrutinising everything. Maybe because of that, he didn't hear Near approach him and almost jumped out of his skin when he felt something tapping his shoulder.

He whipped around, reaching for his gun, but then froze, almost laughing. Near was standing there with wide eyes. One of his hands was raised, the other clutching a small object to his chest. He offered it to Matt, who took it, examining the wooden box. He looked at the eye symbol, frowning. If the clues were consistent, did that mean somebody's _eye_ would fit into the keyhole?

It didn't seem like it – in fact the lock was incredibly thin. Matt suddenly froze as he felt Near swiping at his face. He looked at the boy, confused.

"What are you doing?" He asked. Near was standing on his toes in an attempt to reach… what? Matt touched his own face, wondering if something was stuck to it. Near rolled his eyes.

"Your goggles." He said. "let me see them." This did nothing to make Matt any less confused, but he did as he was told and handed his goggles to Near, who turned them over, examining them. He ran his fingers along the strap, narrowing his eyes. Then he pulled the strap out at one end and looked at it. Then he smiled, almost… evilly…

"Pass me the box." He said. Matt raised an eyebrow, but handed the box back to Near, who slid the end of the strap into the keyhole, and turned.

It clicked. Matt scowled for no particular reason as Near gave him the goggles back and opened the lid.

Another piece of paper. This one had two words. 'Soichiro Yagami.'

Matt assumed he was another member of the task force in Japan, before he saw Near's face. He was frowning.

"What?" Matt asked.

"Soichiro Yagami is dead." Near said, his voice level. "But I suppose L couldn't have known that. Yagami died the night of the explosion." Matt nodded. That made sense.

And in this surrounding, anything that made sense was one-of-a-kind.

-----------------------

Mello didn't see where Near was going with all of this, but he knew he had to cooperate. He felt sorry for Matt – he was probably the only one who hadn't the faintest clue what was going on.

It felt fruitless, searching for… something he should be searching for… He didn't know what it was, what it could be. Did Near know? He must. He never did anything without a reason – Mello would give him that much.

He wondered if Hal was truly in love with him, but it got him nowhere. How the hell was he supposed to know what she was thinking? He closed his eyes and shook his head, trying to focus on… something… anything… What was he looking for…?

Would he ever know…?

-----------------------

Lidner wondered if there really was anyone who knew everything about this case. Her, Gevanni, Rester and Matt seemed to be just about in the same boat as far as that was concerned. She didn't know how much Mello was keeping from her – or if he really _was_ clueless about everything. The only person she could think of who might know everything was Near. And if she was going that far, she might as well give up. Near wasn't going to tell her – or anyone – anything.

If there was one thing she had learned while working for him was that he wasn't one to rely on others – which made it all the more strange that he'd called Mello here. Strange that he'd even set up the SPK in the first place. Well, she supposed even L himself couldn't do everything by himself. It made her wonder – how much did Near know about her relationship with Mello…? Did he deliberately give her information, expecting her to pass it on to Mello?

In which case, who's fault was it when nearly all her colleagues had died in front of her? Was it Near, who had deliberately given her information? Was it her own fault for giving said information to Mello? Was it just him? Or was it that he wanted to show the mafia that he was trustworthy?

She almost snorted at the irony. They'd trusted him, and now they were all dead. Mello had whittled down both sides effectively – even managing to kill one of the Japanese task force, by accident or not. Was he doing this on purpose – trying to wear down the people involved in the case to those he either knew he trusted or knew he didn't? Lidner didn't know.

She didn't even know how she felt about him.

-----------------------

_A/N: Ooh, angst! Lol. Hope you enjoyed!_


	30. Chapter 30

Over the next week, they went to several different locations and discovered several different boxes with a variety of different obscure keys. Luckily, though, none of them were any more complex than the first one. Until the second to last.

This time, they were sent to a specific building. Matt realised how heavily this relied on chance – seeing as any of these places could have been torn down in the years after L died. The building was basically a shed – abandoned and in the middle of practically nowhere. The outside was rusted, but it was clearly painted striped black and white. What was strange, though, was that some stripes were thin and others were thick, seemingly without a pattern. It reminded Matt of something, but he wasn't sure what.

Matt and Near managed to find the box without any trouble, and opened it with the end of a piece of Lego that Near found in his pocket. On the piece of paper, it read: 'Kitamura'. Even Matt recognised the name of the man Mello had kidnapped.

While the others were still searching the building and the land around it, Near got out a laptop, slotted the disc into it and typed in the password for the second to last file.

There was no address. Only an image. It was the image of infinity – the snake eating its own tail. Near and Matt both recognised it.

"Hmm…" Matt frowned. "For the next file, try 'Ouroboros'" The name of the symbol. Near did, and it didn't work. "How about 'infinity'?" He asked. This was also denied.

"Dammit…" Matt muttered. Then: "Is there anything else – something we might have overlooked…?"

"Hmm…" Near wondered. "Infinity… going round in circles… endless… the future, the past… the universe…" Then he shook his head. "No, it's not specific enough – there are endless things…" Matt frowned at the irony. Endless symbol, endless meaning, endless possibilities.

They went back to Phoenix without an answer, and – for Matt and Near – without a hope. They'd expected some sort of conclusion. Of course, this would seem no different to Mello or the SPK. They would assume Near had something else up his sleeve.

But there was nothing left…

-----------------------

Mello was surprised when Near didn't call them the next day – surely he'd have some other wild goose chase for them? Mello was beginning to think that this wasn't a case at all. Just some random coincidence. But then… it couldn't be…

After a few days, he decided to contact Near. When he did, the young detective seemed downcast. Mello could sort of understand – they were going absolutely nowhere. It was an odd feeling – and he was irked at being able to empathise with Near.

"I have no news for you, Mello." He said when Mello called him. Mello frowned.

"Then what the hell was all that for…?" He didn't have to explain – Near knew he meant the clueless places they'd investigated. Mello was surprised at his answer.

"I… I don't know…" Near whispered. He hung up, and Mello was left with the phone beeping in his ear and a startled look on his face.

-----------------------

Matt was going round in circles, literally and figuratively. He was pacing around the room in a wide arc, thinking things over. The infinity symbol had come to haunt him, and when he realised he was tracing its shape with his footsteps he stopped angrily. He felt it was taking him over.

He hadn't been designed to be stressful. Quite the opposite, in fact. He was usually the calm one out of him and Mello, which was what made this so weird. Mello was oddly distant and silent most of the time – and Matt could only assume that he was also thinking about this.

The only difference was marked by the fact that Matt knew this had no end. No beginning and no end.

"ARG!" He yelled, tossing his head around violently to rid his mind of the image. The snake taunted him – the piercing glare of its one visible eye goading him until he felt he was going to snap under the pressure. Mello looked up from his chocolate bar.

"What the hell, Matt…?" He asked, almost curiously. His comparative calm made Matt's frustration seem almost mad. Insane. Just like this whole thing.

Matt swung around to face Mello, feeling like he was drowning. The feeling must have been spelled out in his eyes, because Mello cringed, shrinking backwards – almost like he was scared.

Mello, scared of Matt… What a joke.

-----------------------

_A/N: Whoa I just realised how _long_ this fanfic is! Don't worry, there is only about 5 chapters left._


	31. Chapter 31

The next morning, Matt dragged himself out of bed, not surprised to find the place empty. Mello had gone somewhere.

He slouched to the bathroom, yawning. He was still thinking about everything as he prepared to shave. He closed his eyes, frowning.

When he opened his eyes again, he realised he was scraping his toothbrush down his face and now there was a smear of white slanting down his cheek.

This realisation was instantly banished by another one – this time huge. His eyes widened in realisation and images and words flashed across his mind. He tossed his toothbrush into the sink almost violently and was out of the bathroom in seconds.

He was moving so fast as he crashed into the chair that he sent it skidding on its wheels, but he caught the edge of a desk and hauled himself back towards the computers set up on the table.

He was typing so fast that his fingers were blurred, searching up an image of the building they'd visited a few days before. Aha! Just as he thought! Now he remembered – he knew what it reminded him of.

A barcode…

He quickly translated it into numbers, elated. He was sure he'd found what he was looking for… And then he stopped. Yes, he could translate it to numbers – but how was he going to make it into a password. Of course, the numbers might work, but he doubted L would make it that simple…

Unless… Unless Matt wouldn't expect it to be simple. Maybe he was wrong, maybe he wasn't but at least it was worth trying.

He used the simplest code he could think of – a way of turning the numbers into letters of the alphabet. He was right – all the numbers were under 26. By using the code; 1=A, 2=B et cetera, he changed the numbers into a word.

It was at that moment, the moment he figured it out with a whoop of triumph, that Mello walked in the door.

-----------------------

Mello entered the room to find Matt with his arms in the air, yelling in what appeared to be success.

His companion's hair was messed up and he looked like he'd just gotten out of bed. Which, Mello supposed, was possible. He squinted at Matt's face as the red-head brought his fingers back to the computer keys.

"Matt…" He said curiously. "What's that stuff on your face…?"

"Toothpaste." Matt replied without hesitation, not really paying attention to Mello, who blinked, confused.

And then he heard Matt gasp, as if he'd figured something out, and then the hacker was out of his chair, leaving it spinning.

A second later, Mello was crying out in pain. Matt had grabbed the first part of Mello he could reach – which happened to be his hair – and started dragging him towards the door. Mello yelped, too shocked to do anything like lash out or pull out his gun.

"Matt what the HELL are you doing??!" He spluttered as Matt pulled him out of the front of the hotel. They were attracting several looks from random passers-by, but Mello was a little more concerned about the fact that his hair was nearly being pulled out by his best friend. Matt didn't answer him, he just continued dragging him towards the parking lot.

Mello saw what was coming and his eyes widened. As they reached the car Matt threw the passenger door open, grabbed Mello's hair at the roots to get more leverage and tossed him into the vehicle.

Mello howled in indignation and agony as he parted with several hairs. Matt slammed the door and got in the drivers side, firing up the ignition with apparent zeal.

After a few minutes Mello had stopped seething enough to speak.

"What—" He gasped, anger rearing up inside him. "The… HELL was that for??!" Before he'd even finished his sentence, Matt was shaking his head.

"No." He said. "It's your turn to be confused."

-----------------------

_A/N: lol I couldn't resist! It's just tempting fate to have hair that long! XDXDXD_


	32. Chapter 32

_A/N: I was going to upload this chapter yesterday, but document manager was "currently down at the moment". Seriously! is supposed to be a literary website!! Sorry for that little spaz, but I don't really like hypocritical people. No offense to anyone. By the way, did anyone else have trouble with uploading stuff yesterday? Anyway…_

-----------------------

In truth, Lidner wasn't really doing anything. She was just sitting at a computer – tapping the occasional key to make it seem like she was working. Not that she would fool anyone. They would have more than enough time to look at her and figure out that she had nothing to do. Because they didn't have anything to do either.

She looked over at Near, who had been sitting in the same position for the past… God knows how many hours. It was apparent even to her that he was almost tearing himself apart. She wished she knew why.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Rester speaking.

"Near!" He said, and the boy's head whipped around to see where Rester's hand was pointing, to one of the screens monitoring the cameras in the building. Linder looked, too… and saw something so hilarious she almost wanted to cry.

It was Mello. More specifically, it was Mello being dragged through the corridors of the hotel by his hair. Matt stomped ahead of him, looking determined and leading Mello along. She heard Mello's voice through the speakers.

"MATT!" He yelled. "I CAN F***ING WALK BY MYSELF!!"

"The hell you can, Mello." Matt replied through gritted teeth. Lidner stifled a giggle. Rester was looking at Near, an almost panicked look on his face.

"What do we do?" He asked. Near looked like he was choking with surprise. A second later, he composed his features.

"Let them in." He said calmly, but Lidner thought she heard a hint of shakiness underneath the façade. It was understandable.

A minute later, Mello stumbled through the door, having apparently been thrown. The momentum carried him further and he crashed to his knees. Lidner noted with a chuckle that he was clutching his crucifix – supposedly praying.

Matt followed after him, only looking a little more organised. His hair was sticking up everywhere, his goggles were askew and he had a smear of something on his cheek…

"What's that on your face?" asked Near, who was obviously thinking along the same lines as her.

"Toothpaste." Matt said, straightening his goggles. "But that's not important. I figured out the password!" Lidner looked around to see if there was anyone who actually understood this. She stopped at Near, who was wide-eyed.

"Y-you did…" He whispered. Lidner was amazed. He had stuttered. _Near_ had stuttered.

This had to be big.

-----------------------

Mello's mind was reeling as he kneeled on the floor. He was looking up at Near – for once – and trying to figure out what was going on. What password? What did Matt know that he didn't?

Overall he thought he was being treated pretty badly. First with the hair thing, then no explanations and now Matt knew something he didn't. _Everything_ he didn't, apparently.

This was too much. Without thinking, he sprang up from the floor, clearing the space between him and Near in a heartbeat. He grabbed the 17-year-old by the front of his shirt so that their faces were inches apart.

"What the hell is going—" he managed to yell before a fist hit his face and he crashed to the floor again. He looked up to see Gevanni scowling at him.

"That," said the black-haired man, "was for stealing my gun." Mello spluttered wordlessly. So he'd noticed that…? Man, that guy could hold a grudge.

Near, who seemed to be unruffled, turned back to Matt.

"Come." He said. He was talking to Matt, but the whole group heard him and obeyed. He led them all to a computer, taking a disc from his shirt. He was about to slide it into the computer, then hesitated, looking at the red-head. "Are you sure…?"

"Are we ever going to solve this case if we don't do this?" Matt replied. Near's expression hardened.

"No." He muttered, and pushed the disc into the slot.

-----------------------

_A/N: Getting exciting, yes? XP_


	33. Chapter 33

Matt's heart was pounding in anticipation. Was this it…? He remembered the code, it _had _to be, it couldn't be a coincidence. Near spoke.

"Does it have anything to do with infinity?" He asked. Matt shook his head, and Near frowned. "Then what…?"

"The building." Matt said. "The shed. It was painted black and white – a barcode." Near's eyes widened and Matt continued. "I figured the snake is irrelevant. There are infinite possibilities, and therefore no possibilities." Near frowned.

"That doesn't make sense," He said. "infinity does not translate to nothing – your theory is flawed." Matt scowled at him.

"Don't knock the theory." He said. "I could be right." He turned his attention to the last file, and typed in the password.

G-O-G-G-L-E-S.

It worked. Nobody said anything, not even the people who had no idea what was going on.

And then something else flashed onto the screen.

"Voice recognition required."

Matt groaned.

-----------------------

Mello was, for once, one of the ones who had no idea what was happening, but he could only assume that this disc belonged to L, and Matt had figured out the password for the last file. Fat lot of good that was when it required voice recognition. Something came up underneath the words on the screen.

"#1 – Near."

Everybody looked at the seventeen-year-old, who stared back at them, wide eyed. He then turned to the screen, automatically twisting a lock of hair round his finger. Thinking. The boy closed his eyes and Mello could almost _see_ his mind whirring. Then his eyes opened.

"Lepidoptera." He spoke clearly into the microphone. It didn't work. Then he hissed to himself; "No, no… not that imprecise…" He tried again; "Troides Alexandrae."

This time it beeped – Mello rolled his eyes; typical Near – then the screen flashed and it came up with;

"#2 – Matt."

The red-head chewed his lip, but he seemed to know the answer. He leaned close to the microphone, glancing up at the screen.

"Ella Jeevas." He said clearly. Mello frowned… Ella… he… Matt… What the hell?

The screen changed again.

"#3 – Mello."

Mello suddenly exploded.

"What the HELL??" he yelled. "Why the hell am I third?—" He was about to continue when the computer beeped and the screen changed again.

"Voices accepted."

Mello gagged.

"_That_ was what I had to say??!" He gasped. Everybody looked at him. He sighed, exasperated. "Just look at the damn screen." He muttered.

The screen now bore a large calligraphic L, and there was a voice coming out of the speaker. Distorted, warped.

"Congratulations." Said the voice. "You've solved the case. About seven years ago from where you are now, something like this happened to me. A certain individual took it upon himself to invent a case that I could never solve." Mello's eyes widened. The LABB serial murder cases! "I decided to give you three a watered-down version of it. Prepare you for the real world, as it were. I suppose Matt was the one to discover the password. I'd love to know what gave your mind inspiration to figure this out." Mello looked at Matt, who was touching his face self-consciously. Mello wanted to laugh – how was toothpaste for inspiration? He wondered how it had got there in the first place.

The voice continued: "I laugh about this whenever I think about it, and I'm sure I will do until I die. I'm sorry if I've frustrated you. I hope I can watch this from heaven – I'm sure it will be very amusing. I'm sorry about this, but I don't know if I should speak in the present or past tense – it's rather hard to decided how one should speak after they die." Mello gulped.

"I suppose I owe you an explanation, and I should start from the beginning. You were lead to Phoenix by the money I put into Near's bank account. From there, you each in turn received small communicators from different sources." Mello, Matt and Near all looked at each other. They'd _all_ been contacted? What _was_ this? "From there, Matt and Near worked together while Mello had to sit back and cooperate."

Mello wanted, no, _needed_ to swear at somebody. Matt and Near had been working together??! While L had instructed him to just do whatever he was told?

"It was a new experience for all of you – Mello had to do nothing, Near had to accept working with somebody he considers of no importance, and Matt was a key part of the investigation. By the way, I hope you had fun trying to steal Mello's rosary, Matt." Mello blinked, looking down at the cross. What the hell? He looked at Matt, who was wearing a sheepish expression. Something that sounded distinctly like laughter came from the speakers.

"After Matt and Near had figured out all the clues, you eventually came to the last one. The snake. Infinity. I hope you've realised that it is irrelevant. It was only there to frustrate you – it's infinity and therefore nothing."

"Shit…" Said a voice. Mello couldn't believe what he was hearing. No _way._

No freaking WAY!

Near _swore_!

-----------------------

_A/N: Yes, yes, I _know_ Near swearing is completely unrealistic. But I couldn't help myself! Hehe. XD_


	34. Chapter 34

Matt's mind was reeling. Firstly, apparently Mello had been contacted, too, and told that he had to do whatever Near told him to.

Secondly, he'd been right. _He_ had been right! And Near had been wrong.

And third… _Near_ swore… No, _really_. Truly.

_Crapping hell, _He thought, disregarding grammar. _Can this _get_ any weirder?_

"And so," L continued to speak, "you are finally here. You're finally at the end. And I'm not going to name a successor, no more than I would have before I died. You may have forgotten, I am still the same person – I haven't had years to change me. And you can continue working together, or apart. I suppose now you may get back to the Kira case or whatever you're working on now. I hope this was fun. Goodbye."

With that, The screen turned black. And mayhem erupted.

"What the HELL was _that_??!" Mello yelled, at the same time as Matt turned to him and said;

"What the hell _happened_?!"

There was a lot more shouting from them before Mello finally calmed down and agreed to tell them what happened.

"So, L contacted me." He said. "He told me I had to go along with what Near told me to do," He shot a glare at nobody in particular. "He told me to just wait and see what happened. How the hell was I to know that while I was doing nothing, _Matt_ was practically solving the case?!" He rounded on his partner. "And, while we're asking questions, who the hell is Ella Jeevas?"

Matt sighed. He should have known it would come to this.

"She's my sister." He said. "We were separated when I came to Wammy's house and we hadn't seen each other since—"

"Yeah, yeah," Mello interrupted, "Spare me the life story crap." Matt could tell Mello was really pissed off – usually he wouldn't interrupt something as sentimental as that until at least three sentences in.

"So…" Near said, apparently recovered. "It looks like he's not going to name a successor, so—"

"Oh, you picked that up, huh?" Mello interrupted again. Matt got the feeling he was sulking. The blond took a chocolate bar out of his coat and chewed on it bitterly.

"So I guess he expects us to just go back to the Kira case…" Near continued without batting an eyelid. "It's time to leave Phoenix."

-----------------------

Before they left, though, Matt had something he had to do. He had to see Ella again. This time, though, he brought Mello with him.

She stood in the doorway, looking at the duo. Then she smiled, and launched herself into Matt's arms.

"I knew you'd come back!" She said, then quietly; "I thought you said Mello was a guy."

"He _is._" Matt hissed back. Then they separated and Matt introduced Mello and Ella to each other. Suddenly her face fell.

"You're not coming back after this, are you?" She said. Matt frowned.

"I don't think so." He said. Better to tell the truth. Ella sighed.

"Goodbye, then." She said, hugging him again. Then she pulled away, frowning up at him.

"What's that stuff on your cheek?" She asked.

"Ow!" yelled Mello as Matt punched him in the face. "That's the third damn time this week!"

-----------------------

Mello didn't want to, but Matt also had to say goodbye to Near. They entered the hotel and went up to the room the SPK was housed in.

Near let them in.

"Hello." He said warily. "Matt. Mello."

"Hey, Near." Matt said cheerfully. "We just thought we'd come to say goodbye. Didn't we, Mello?" Mello folded his arms and avoided all eyes. "Anyway…" Matt continued.

Then he held up his hand. Near looked concerned and awkwardly raised his own hand. Matt slapped his hand into Near's enthusiastically. Near just seemed worried, but Matt laughed.

"Congratulations!" He said brightly. "You high-fived!" Suddenly, he hugged the boy.

He felt Near stiffen and sensed several guns pointing at him.

"Get. Off. Me." Near said, teeth gritted. Matt was alarmed.

"Ok, man…" He said, exasperated, releasing Near. "Ok…"

-----------------------

Another week later. Mello was on the phone to Hal, having a conversation he never, _ever_ wanted to have again. He had decided it would be best to just get it over with, so the first thing he said after she picked up the phone was;

"Hal, do you love me?" He'd already known the answer subconsciously.

"Yes, I suppose I do, Mello." She said. "But that doesn't really mean anything. I'm eight years older than you." Mello hadn't known that – she looked younger. He sighed.

"I… Uh…" He didn't know what to say, but he knew he had to say _something._ He needed this conversation to end well. Or at least, not incredibly badly. "I don't want it to change anything, but…" He didn't know how to say this. "I-I'm not sure. I don't…" Well this was going very well indeed.

_Just _say_ something, you bastard!_ A little voice in his head yelled at him.

"I don't love you, Hal." He blurted, not knowing if it was a lie. There was a pause. Then;

"I understand." After which she hung up.

So much for that conversation not ending incredibly badly. Mello sighed, knowing what he had to do.

-----------------------

_A/N: extra long chapter required extra long author's note! Hehe. Don't ask why, but somehow I realised Mello gets punched in the face a lot in my fan fictions. Lulz. First one by Hal, second by Gevanni and third by Matt. Hmm… Rester seems a little left out – for one thing, he's the only one of the SPK who hasn't inflicted physical pain upon Mello. Lol._

_And, yeah… sorry about the sad HalxMello ending… ummm…_

_The next chapter will be the last one. Phew, _finally_! Lol. Hope you liked, and now I'm done rambling!_


	35. Chapter 35 Final chapter

When Matt entered the room, Mello was writing. He walked over to him and tried to read over his shoulder. Before he could, though, the paper was flipped over, and Mello was glaring at him. But he wasn't fast enough. Matt had caught part of a sentence.

It had read; '… I'm afraid I will no longer be alive.' Matt's eyes widened. What was going on?

"…Mello…" He said. Mello was already standing, leaning on the table.

The blond let his hair fall over his face, obscuring it from view. Matt couldn't tell what his expression looked like. That movement – it seemed like a timid one, something a weak person would do. Mello was not weak.

"Mello, what the hell is going on…?" his voice was full of concern.

"Nothing." Mello spat, but without energy.

"The hell it's nothing…" Matt muttered. "…What are you planning? And what were you writing?" Mello looked at him.

"I'll be honest with you." He said. "I don't think I'm going to survive this. And that's… Well… I don't know. My dying message? What the hell… I just want somebody to know…"

"Know what…?" Matt's eyes were wide with alarm.

"About the LABB serial murder case." Mello said gravely. "What really happened…"

Matt didn't know what to say.

-----------------------

Ella didn't know what to do. How would she know what would happen to Mail now? She couldn't sit down, she was too jumpy. She turned on the T.V and flicked through the channels. On one of the news channels there was a report about some Japanese woman getting kidnapped. She was about to flip the channel when something caught her eye.

"…God…" She whispered…. "No… _No!_"

His bright red hair covered his face, but the other red was much worse. It ripped through her, and she felt like it was her who was getting shot. Again and again, over and over. It stained his jacket, tainted him, streaks on his face and angry patches all over his chest. Bullet holes.

She felt her legs giving out and she crashed to her knees, slumping the same way he was, lifeless. Silent tears streamed down her face and blurred her vision.

She fell to the floor, unconscious.

-----------------------

Halle Lidner drove aggressively, passing the speed limit as she swerved between cars. She had her FBI badge at the ready to flash at anybody who dared question her driving.

Why would Mello do something like this? What was the point? She reached her destination, screeching to a halt at an angle, instantly out of the car.

She stopped in her tracks as the wave of heat hit her.

Shielding her face with her arm, she took in the flames.

_No…_ she thought, pain flashing before her eyes. _Mello!_

-----------------------

When Ella woke up, she was in a hospital room. She didn't know why. Then she remembered, and started crying.

She felt a hand on her shoulder, but didn't bother looking up. Then she felt arms around her, awkward and not really comforting. She glanced upwards.

She saw a boy through her tears, possibly about one year older than her. He had white hair and wore white clothes. He hardly had any colour at all. He let go of her.

"I'm Near." He said quietly. "I suppose Matt… Mail told you about me." She searched her memory, and it was bitter. She nodded. "I have decided to take this matter into my own hands, now that the Kira case is nearly over. You're not going to be alone, I'm going to make sure of that."

She smiled through her sadness, and suddenly grabbed him around the waist, sobbing into his white shirt. She felt him gulp, and mutter something about things running in the family.

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_A/N: The End. Enough said._


End file.
